Rikudo Sennin Tensei
by Teddypro
Summary: Taking Wacko12's Peace Challenge. After the Valley of the End, Naruto is taken by a strange man and the truth about his heritage and who he is is brought to light. With this revelation, Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto, the Rikudo Sennin Reborn, shall rise to bring peace to the shinobi world. As well as give the Akatsuki and Otogakure a hard time along the way. Please read and review.
1. Sennin's Return

**Author's Note: I have decided to take Wacko12's 'Peace Challenge'. Note: I will have one or two OCs in this.**

**Disclaimer - I do not own Naruto.**

**Chapter 1 - Sennin's Return**

* * *

"**RASENGAN**!"

"**CHIDORI**!"

Naruto's and Sasuke's attacks hit straight on creating a large explosion that sent both boys flying in opposite directions. Both Kyuubi's one tailed form and Sasuke's Cursed Seal form faded and both of them hit the ground hard. There was silence for a few seconds before Naruto slowly got himself up. He weakly moved himself over to Sasuke, who was unconscious. Naruto grunted, "I'm taking you home now. . . teme."

With that, Naruto fell backwards into unconsciousness. A couple of seconds after this, there was the sound of the wind shifting and a mysterious black figure appeared. The figure was cloaked in a black haori and a pair of black pants as well. The figure's head was cloaked so his eyes could be seen nor could his mouth or nose be seen due to the cloak hiding them. He casually put his hand on his chin and spoke out loud to himself, "Blonde hair; check. Whisker marks; check. Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi; check."

The figure, whose voice revealed him as a young man, took a breath of relief, "Finally found the kid. He didn't make it easy."

The man walked over and picked up the young Jinchuuriki and put him on his back with the boy's head on his shoulder. The man smiled under his mask, "No need to worry, kid. That hell hole of a village won't be bothering you again."

Just as the figure was about to leave, Kakashi jumped down into the Valley besides the fallen Uchiha. He had a kunai ready.

"Put Naruto down," Kakashi ordered.

The man didn't seem impressed, "Who are you to make demands of me?"

"I am a Jonin of Konoha and I am ordering you to drop the boy and leave or I shall take him back by force."

Kakashi could feel the man's eye pierce his soul even though he couldn't see them. The man held out his left arm and formed his hand as if he was about to flick the air.

"Begone, boy."

With that, the man flicked his figure and Kakashi suddenly felt like he had been punched in the face. He flew back but did manage to regain his footing. His eyes shot up ready to fight his opponent, but to his surprise and horror the man and Naruto were gone. The only trace left was a slight trail of settling dust falling down as if the man had jumped sky high.

Kakashi quickly summoned Pakkun, "Pakkun, someone has taken Naruto. I need you to track them."

Pakkun quickly sniffed around but he turned to Kakakshi sadly, "Kakashi, there isn't any trail to follow."

Kakashi blinked in surprise, "What do you mean there isn't a trail to follow?!"

"Just that. Whoever it was left no trace of himself or Naruto here to follow."

Kakashi spent a couple of seconds taking it all in before he screamed out his frustration and slammed his fist into the ground below. His fist was bleeding but he didn't care. He had failed his student.

"Naruto. . ." Kakashi whispered sadly as a single tear fell from his lone eye.

* * *

The Retrieval Team solemnly made their way through Konoha to the Hokage Tower. Very few people noticed the absence of Naruto and everyone noticed that the Uchiha prodigy was slung over Choji's shoulder. When the team reached the Hokage Tower, Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Shizune were waiting for them.

"We got back to Uchiha brat," Choji said grudgingly.

"Well, at least the Civilian Council will be happy," Shizune grunted.

"Where's Naruto?" came Jiraiya's voice. Tsunade and Shizune looked at the Retrieval Team and also noticed the absence of the blonde knucklehead.

"Kakashi," Tsunade said in a dangerously low voice. "Where is Naruto?"

Kakashi took a deep breath, "He was taken."

Alarmed, Jiraiya shot towards the Copy-nin. "Taken?! By who?! Describe them?!"

"Master Jiraiya, he was taken by only one person. He was a cloaked man entirely in black. However, I couldn't identify him."

"His cloak," Jiraiya stated. "Did it have anything on it?"

"No, it didn't. It was just plain black."

"_So most likely it wasn't Akatsuki_," Jiraiya thought to himself. Tsunade was glaring holes into the Jonin, "If you saw him why didn't you stop him?"

"Hokage-sama, I did try to stop him."

Tsunade slammed her fisting into her desk, breaking it. "THEN WHY ISN'T HE HERE?!"

"I don't know how he did it but he finger flicked the air in front of himself and it suddenly felt like Gai had given me a Dynamic Entry straight to my face. By the time I had regain my bearing he was gone. I summoned Pakkun to track him but he couldn't find any trace of either the man or of Naruto."

Tsunade and Jiraiya blinked in surprise, "Pakkun couldn't find any trace of them? Nothing?"

Kakashi shook his head no.

There was a moment of silence before a large shout of frustration and the sound of a fist connecting to a wall could be heard across Konoha from the Hokage Tower. Surprising to everyone in there room, the perpetrator was Jiraiya.

"Jiraiya. . ." Shizune began but she was cut off as Jiraiya turned around and positioned himself on the windowsill.

"Jiraiya, where are you going?" Tsunade asked with authority. Jiraiya, however, barely even glanced at her, "To find my godson."

With that, Jiraiya was gone, leaving everyone in the room in stunned silence.

* * *

After Jiraiya left, the Retrieval Team left to take the Uchiha to the hospital. When they got there, Sakura was waiting for them.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura shouted as she ran up to Choji, who was still carrying him. "What the hell happened to him!"

"Sasuke wouldn't come back willingly so Naruto fought him into unconsciousness to get him back for you," Neji said with a slight glare. "So here's your damn Uchiha traitor."

"Sasuke isn't a traitor!" Sakura yelled at him. "It was caused by the Cursed Seal. I thought you knew this. And what do you mean that demon fought him into unconsciousness?! I told Naruto to bring Sasuke back not beat him back!"

"He didn't have a choice in the matter," Shino stated.

"He shouldn't have harmed Sasuke-kun!"

"Will you just shut up, you troublesome banshee!" Shikamaru said angrily surprising everyone, with his actual show of effort. "Naruto's gone now because of that request of your's!"

Unfortunately, Hinata happened to be passing by at that exact moment and heard what Shikamaru said. She stared at he friends in horror. Neji noticed her and elbowed Shikamaru's arm. Shikamaru turned and saw Hinata, a horrified expression on her face.

"_Troublesome,_" Shikamaru thought. "Hinata. . ."

"W-w-what h-happened t-to N-Na-Naruto?" Hinata asked, terrified of the answer.

"Naruto managed to beat Sasuke," Neji began to tell her. "But apparently some arrived right after both fell unconscious and took Naruto. Managed to beat Kakashi, too. He told us that the man performed single flick of the finger in mid-air and suddenly it felt like Gai-sensei did a Dynamic Entry straight into his face."

Many of them winced at that. Hinata looked at her cousin, "S-s-so y-you d-don't kn-know if-if h-he's a-alright?"

Neji shook his head. Sakura scoffed, "Good riddance. Who need that pathetic demonic dobe anyway."

The rest of the Konoha 12 members that were there all glared. But before anyone could retorted Sakura suddenly fell victim to a very strong blow to her stomach that sent her to her knees. Sakura looked up and to her surprise and to the surprise of the Retrieval Team, the attacker was Hinata.

"How dare you, Sakura," Hinata said angrily and without a stutter, much to the shock of those present. "How dare you! Naruto risked his life to get your precious Uchiha back for you and this is how you thank him?! I'd sooner partner up with members of the Sound village than with you!"

Everyone was shocked. They had never seen Hinata act like this at all. With her speech done, Hinata stormed off. The Retrieval Team couldn't help but feel sorry for her. The love of her life was now Kami knows where and in Kami knows condition and she couldn't do anything for him. Sakura soon managed to recover from Hinata's strike, "What the hell is that freak's problem. How could she stand up for that demon?"

The Retrieval Team glared at her, "Sakura. You better get out of our line of sight or we will hurt you."

Sakura blinked at her comrades, "What?"

Neji began counting down, "Five, four, three, two. . ."

"Alright, I get it. I just don't see why that demon's so important to you."

With that she walked away. Shikamaru sighed, "Troublesome."

"I'd have to agree with you there," the Retrieval Team looked up to see Kakashi walking up to them. Strangely, the orange book he always had wasn't in sight. "Sorry about my student."

"It's not your fault," Neji told the Copy-nin. "Choji, take the Uchiha traitor inside."

Choji nodded and went inside. Neji, Shikamaru, and Shino looked at the ex-ANBU member. "So, what's going on?"

"Tsunade's in a council meeting discussing the mission's results."

Shikamaru shook his head, "Troublesome."

* * *

Tsunade looked around the room. The shinobi council, the civilian council, and the elders were all there. Tsunade looked at the council gathered and began.

"Less than two hours ago, the Retrieval Team managed to bring back Uchiha Sasuke to the village."

Both sides of the council breathed a sigh of relief. One councilman spoke up, "Where is the Uchiha now?"

"He is currently in Konoha Hospital being treated for severe injuries."

With that sentence there was an uproar from the civilian side of the council.

"What, who harmed the Uchiha?"

"He should be punished severly for such an act."

"Silence!" Tsunade shouted and the entire civilian side instantly closed their mouths. "Let me continue. From report of the mission, Uchiha Sasuke did not come willingly and was beaten into submission by one Uzumaki Naruto."

The council was instantly in an uproar again.

"What?! The demon brat was responsible for this?"

"He tried to kill the Uchiha!"

"That brat must be executed!"

"SHUT UP!" Tsunade shouted. The council immediately shut up. "Uzumaki Naruto is the reason I called you all hear."

"So we are deciding his punishment I'm guess," a more 'rounded' member of the civilian council asked arrogantly.

"No, the problem is much more serious."

"Did the demon get loose?" asked Choza Akimichi worriedly.

"No," Tsunade said and with a deep breath uttered one phrase. "Uzumaki Naruto, Jinchuuriki of Kyuubi no Kitsune, was kidnapped when he fell unconscious after he defeated the Uchiha."

There was a silence that followed. A stunned silence. Even Danzo seemed surprised at this turn of events. It was then the Hyuuga Hiashi spoke up, "Who kidnapped him? Who took the boy?"

Tsunade sighed, "Kakashi is the only one who saw the perpetrator, but Kakashi described him as a man entirely in black who didn't seem worried that a powerful Jonin like Kakashi was in his way. According to Kakashi, the man merely flicked the air in front of him and, again according to Kakashi, felt an impact to his skull that wasn't dissimilar to one of Gai's Dynamic Entries."

The entire shinobi council and the elders winced at that.

"By the time Kakashi regained his bearing the man was gone as was Naruto," the council blinked. They knew that even if something as strong as one of Gai's Dynamic Entries struck Kakashi head on, his recover still would've been very quick. The man must've been incredibly fast for Kakashi not being able to see him. "Kakashi summoned Pakkun to track him but the summon couldn't find any trace that the man was even there to begin with."

The shinobi council gaped. Pakkun couldn't track this guy? Who in this world could hide themselves so well that fast?

"Hmph, so the demon's gone. Who cares?" a councilman spoke outloud earning a glare from the shinobi side and from the elders.

"Perhaps you don't realize what this means do you?" Shikaku, the Jonin Commander, asked the civilian council member, who shook his head.

"It means," Hyuuga Hiashi continued. "That Konoha has lost its advantage over the other shinobi nations."

The civilian council looked on confused. Tsunade nodded her head, "Yes, the other nations each have Jinchuuriki, however, we had the strongest one, the Kyuubi. With it gone, Konoha is now greatly weakened."

"So what if the Kyuubi is gone," shouted out another councilmember. "We have the Uchiha brat. He can grow to take on a Jinchuuriki!"

"Really?" Tsunade asked sarcastically. "An Uchiha boy, a genin no less, has the strength to match up with a Jinchuuriki, whom most of which are either chunin and jonin and some have a very strong leash on their demons? Can that teenager match up against a being that took the Shodai Hokage to match up against?"

The council is silent. They didn't have a retort for this. Danzo then spoke up, "We need to send out search teams for the Jinchuuriki at once."

Inoichi sighed, "Really, you think our search teams will have any luck in finding someone that Kakashi was right on top of but still couldn't find any trace of him. And if what he says is true about his skill and speed, he's probably as far as Iwa by now."

"Besides," Tsunade spoke up. "Jiraiya is out there frantically searching for him. He and his spy network will find him."

"For all our sake I hope you are right, Hokage-sama."

* * *

When Naruto awoke the first he could see was only blurs and shapes. However, as the images got clearer he could tell he was neither in his apartment nor in Konoha's hospital. He seemed to be in a stone room. He managed to sit up a bit, enduring some pain along the way, and he took a look at his surroundings. Despite it being made of rock, the room seemed rather homey. He was in a nice, comfortable bed, there was a dresser, a desk, and a small bookcase. The room was very nicely lite up adding to the homey feel of it.

"Huh, where am I."

As if on queue a door on the other side of the room opened and a man entered. He was cloaked and was wearing entirely black. Naruto blinked before narrowing his eyes, "Who are you?"

"Hold that thought, boy, let me get out of this," Naruto's eyes widened in surprise at the man's casual tone. Naruto watched as the man removed his cloak to reveal his face. The man looked around his mid-20s if Naruto had to guess and had long black hair tied into a long ponytail that reached mid-back. The ponytail, however, looked so smooth and so narrow it would've been more accurate to call it a dragontail.

The man's eyes, however, were the most curious part of him. His eye color was midnight blue, that wasn't strange. It was the fact that the 'whites' of his eyes were pitch black. Yet for some reason it didn't disturb Naruto for whatever reason. The air around him did seem to be an air of power but it was still gentle.

"Now, what was your question again, boy?" the man asked raising an eyebrow. Naruto deadpanned.

"I asked who you were."

"Ah, right." The man held out his hand to Naruto, "My name is Mahotsukai Kaosu, the Mortal Harbinger of Yami himself. At your service of course."

Naruto's eyes widened in shock, "You serve Yami? As in, the God of Darkness Yami?"

Now it was Kaosu's turn to deadpan, "Yes, that Yami. Tell me, how many other Yamis do you know?"

"But-"

"How'd it happen?" Kaosu finished for him. "A story for another time, however, I am not here to talk about myself. I am here to talk about you."

Naruto blinked, "Me?"

"Yes, you," Kaosu answered as he sat on a stole besides Naruto's bed and crossed his arms. "First, let me clarify this. I know you're the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Kitsune."

Naruto froze and stared at the man with downright horror. Kaosu rolled his eyes, "You know if you keep giving me that face with every bit of information I give you, you might as well just keep your face like that."

Naruto immediately wiped the look of shock from his face and looked at Kaosu, "Is that the reason why you brought me here?"

Kaosu held up his hand and shook it a little is a 'sort-of' type of manner. Naruto then blinked again, "Where is here exactly? How long was I out for?"

"You have been out for about a day or so. And as for where you are, you are in my little, underground abode in Uzushiogakure, the home of your ancestors on your mother's side."

"My mother?!" Naruto shouted and tried to sit up farther up on his bed but the pain forced him back down. Kaosu was instantly by his side helping him lay back down, "Easy, kid. You're still sore from your fight with the gaki."

"What happened to Sasuke anyway?" Naruto asked him.

"Your sensei took him back to Konoha, however, I brought you here."

"He-he left me?" Naruto asked feeling hurt and betrayed.

"No, he tried to stop me but I knocked him away. Why I shall get to in a moment."

Naruto nodded as Kaosu continued, "Anyway, back onto the subject of your parents. Your mother was Uzumaki Kushina, the Chishio no Habanero (Red Hot-Blooded Habanero). She was a member of the Uzumaki clan, the clan that led the village of Uzushiogakure, where we are right now."

Naruto gaped in surprise, "My mother's clan had a village?"

Kaosu nodded with a grin, "Yep, the sole leaders. They were famous, and some might say infamous, for their skills with the sword and in fuinjutsu. They are a very powerful clan. In fact, they are cousin clan to the Senju. Furthermore, the Shodai Hokage's wife was an Uzumaki."

"Really?"

"Yep, and while I am thinking about it, his wife, Uzumaki Mito, was the first Jinchuuriki for the Kyuubi, the second was your mother, and you are the third."

Naruto blinked in surprise and in shock. He couldn't believe it. His mother and the Shodai Hokage's wife were not only of the same clan but they were also the Jinchuuriki of the Fox before he was. Naruto looked up at him, "What happened to my mother? Why is the Fox now in me?"

Kaosu sighed, "I wasn't given the full details but someone attacked you while you were being born. He used the moment of weakness of your mother to free the Kyuubi and spread havoc across Konoha. To keep Konoha safe, your father sacrificed himself to seal the Kyuubi into you."

"My father sealed the Kyuubi into me? But I thought it was-" Naruto trailed off as his face got pale with shock. "The Yondaime. . .the Yondaime is my father."

"Namikaze Minato, the Yellow Flash," Kaosu confirmed. "He couldn't asked another family to sacrifice their child if wasn't willing to do it himself. He also trusted that you'd be able to handle the beast and that you would be taken care of. As you know yourself, however, only the former came to reality."

Naruto was in tears by this point and Kaosu put a comforting hand on the boy's head.

"I know it's a lot to take in, Naruto," Kaosu said in a gentle voice that was very contrast to the essence he gave off, "But there's still more."

Naruto wiped the tears from his eyes and nodded. Kaosu took a deep breath, "I take it you've heard of the Rikudo Sennin, correct?"

Naruto blinked, "You mean that myth about the Founder of Ninjutsu?"

"It's no myth, boy," Kaosu said seriously. "The Rikudo Sennin did indeed exist. He fought the being known as the Juubi and became the first Jinchuuriki. Towards the end of his life he split the Juubi into nine parts, whom you know today as the nine biju."

Naruto gasped slightly.

"I am not done yet. The Rikudo Sennin is the ancestor of the Uzumaki clan as well as the ancestor of the Senju and Uchiha clans.

Naruto gaped in utter shocked, "I'm-I'm related to the Rikudo Sennin. Wait! I am related to Tsunade-baa-chan and the teme?!"

"Distantly to the latter but yes."

Naruto didn't know whether or not to be disturbed, excited, or both. Naruto slowly laid back down, "I think I need time to process this."

"Not yet, Naruto. I am not done."

Naruto looked at him strangely and then sarcastically asked, "What are you going to tell me I'm the direct descendant of the Rikudo Sennin next?"

"Well, you are but that wasn't what I was going to say," Naruto looked at him with his mouth dropped. He was the original Kami no Shinobi's direct descendant yet that wasn't the important thing Kaosu was going to tell him then what was? "It's actually the reason why I took you away and brought you here. It's is to train you."

Naruto gasped and looked at him, "You want to train me? But why?"

Kaosu pointed at Naruto and said the line that would change Naruto's world forever, "Simple, you are the Rikudo Sennin Reborn. You are his reincarnation. You and the Sennin and one in the same person."

Silence.

Dead silence filled the room.

That is until Naruto shouted out at the top of his lungs, "I'M WHAT?!"

* * *

Jiraiya was quickly making his way through Hi no Kuni trying to find whatever trace of his godson that he could when he stopped.

"Was that Naruto's voice?" Jiraiya asked himself. He could have sworn he had heard his godson's distant voice somewhere. Seemed like it came from the north. "Uh, what am I doing? I've got to continue my search!"

With that, Jiraiya took off again.

* * *

Despite the pain, Naruto was in Kaosu's face shouting at the top of his lungs, "WHAT DO YOU MEAN I AM THE RIKUDO SENNIN'S REINCARNATION?!"

Kaosu face was blank, "First, sit down and shut up, kid. Second, I mean exactly that. You're the Rikudo Sennin Reborn unto this world."

"But-but how is this possible?"

"Look, kid, I am Yami's Harbinger, not Yami himself. He didn't tell me that, however, he did tell me to awake the memories of you past life and then train you to match your predecessor."

"Why would the God of Darkness want to help me?"

"I don't know," Kaosu said. "I did here him mumble something along the lines of '_Damn Kami_' but that's pretty much it."

Naruto sweat-dropped. He had never seen someone act this casual as he talking about Yami. Hell, few people ever really did talk about those deities now that he thought about it. His train of thought was derailed when Kaosu spoke up, "Now, to unlock those memories of yours."

"I am going to get the Sennin's memories?"

"And his dojutsu as well."

"His dojutsu?"

"The Rinnegan, the Eyes of God."

"Awesome! I am going to be the world's greatest shinobi!" Naruto shot up in true Naruto fashion but collapsed again after his brief speech due to the pain. Kaosu deadpanned, "Kid, I thought I told you to sit still and be quiet."

"Sorry," Naruto shrunk under the Harbinger's gaze.

"Now, let us begin," Kaosu said as he put his middle and index finger on Naruto's forehead and slowly shut his eyes to concentrate.

* * *

**I know I haven't been on a lot and it is with good reason. School hasn't been so hot for me recently and I need to work much harder. I'll try to get back to regularly updating my story but I have no promises. However, another is the Maplestory Romance series and the next chapter in Al and the Legendary Hero is still in the works. What about Warriors Orochi: Shinobi of Fire; well I have yet to decide.**

**Anyway, thank you for reading the first chapter of this new fanfiction and please review! Oh, and thank you again to Wacko12 for providing me with both the inspiration and the challenge for this fanfiction!**

**~Teddypro**

**P.S. - MERRY CHRISTMAS!**

**NOTE: I do tend to fix something's after I post because I realized I missed them. Please forgive me for this and I will try and catch as many as I can before I publish.**


	2. Reunions

**Disclaimer - I do not own Naruto.**

**Chapter 2 - Reunions**

* * *

**3 months later. . .**

"**Shinra Tensei**!" Naruto shouted and an invisible force shot Kaosu back quite a ways before he managed to catch readied his preferred weapon, a bastard (meaning one or two-handed) scythe before he shot forward in a zig-zag fashion making him a much harder target to hit. Naruto smirked as his Rinnegan gazed at his sensei. "**Bansho Ten'in**."

Kaosu suddenly felt himself being pulled toward his student, who was now readying a rasengan to shove into his face. He, however, took advantage of this and began to swing his scythe down at the boy. Naruto quickly jumped backwards to avoid the swing just as his master flew passed him. He rebounded, preparing to use his rasengan against his dark-eyed sensei. When he thrust his rasengan at Kaosu it connected instead with the pole of the scythe. The two were locked in the duel between scythe and rasengan before Naruto allowed the rasengan to go critical and release it torrent of energy. Both fighters were forced back yet both remained standing. They stared at each other intently before they both laughed to themselves.

"Well, that certainly was fun," Naruto said to his sensei.

"Indeed, you actually manage to give me a hard time while using so few attacks. That's impressive."

"Thank you, Kaosu-sensei."

"I am pleased to say that there is little else I can prepare you for. You chose only four moves to use against my full arsenal and did a very good job of fending me off. You have master of the five basic elements and the Kurama is by your side. You truly are the Sennin Reborn."

"Thanks, Kaosu-sensei."

Kaosu shook his head, "The sensei is no longer need. I work for you now, Rikudo-sama."

Kaosu bowed. Naruto blinked in surprise but returned the bow. Naruto owed everything that had happened recently to Kaosu. When the man had unsealed the memories of his past life, it was like he had reached enlightenment.

* * *

_**Flashback**_

_"Now, let us begin," Kaosu said as he put his middle and index finger on Naruto's forehead and slowly shut his eyes to concentrate. At first nothing happened, but then a shockwave of pain and memories shot through Naruto's skull at was seemed like the speed of life._

_He saw the Sage's childhood._

_He saw the Sage's training._

_He saw the Sage's techniques._

_He saw the Sage's fight with the Juubi._

_He saw the Sage's wedding._

_He saw the Sage's sons._

_He saw the Sage's elderly days._

_He saw the Sage's mourning of the loss of his wife._

_And He saw the Sage's last words to the new nine Biju before the old man had passed on._

_All these memories and more flashed through Naruto's mind. It felt like thousands upon thousands of shadow clones exploding at once. It was insane. Suddenly his eyes began to burn, but he couldn't move. He could shout out in pain. He could only sit there staring Yami's harbinger on earth. Despite the intense pain, he also felt bliss. It was as if a piece of his being had been returned to him. As if he was being made whole once again.  
_

_Kaosu then removed his hand from Naruto's forehead. Naruto's head looked down and his hand went to his chance as he tried to catch his breath._

_"You okay, kid?" Kaosu asked._

_"Yeah, just give me a moment," After a few moments, Naruto took one deep breath. "Okay, I'm fine now."_

_Naruto looked up and opened his eyes, but immediately had to blink a couple of times, "What? What's with this vision. I see things so much clearer than before! Hey, the faded black stuff around your body, is that your chakra?"_

_Kaosu shrugged, "Probably."_

_"Why is it black?"_

_"Harbinger of Yami, God of Darkness, remember?"_

_"Oh, yeah right."_

_There was a silence for a minute before Kaosu spoke, "So, kid."_

_Naruto looked up, "How do you feel?"_

_Naruto thought a minute before he answered, "I don't know. All these memories. It's very overwhelming. There are so many techniques yet I feel like I already can do them."_

_"Well, technically you can but you body isn't prepared for them yet. Your mind is but your body isn't. That's where I come in. I shall train you so that you can use the Rikudo Sennin's techniques without hindering yourself."_

_Naruto fist-pumped in the air, "Awesome! By the way, what do my dojutsu look like?"_

_Kaosu smiled, "See for yourself."_

_Kaosu pulled out a mirror from Kami knows where and showed it to Naruto. Naruto blinked a couple of times before rubbing his eyes. He leaned forward to get a closer look. No longer were his eyes a charming blue. Now they were a purplish hue with six ring extending from the pupil of his eye. Naruto gaped, "Wow, it looks awesome! Dattebayo!"_

_Kaosu laughed at the boy's antics. Their laugh was interrupted by the sound of Naruto's stomach growling. Naruto looked down at his stomach and Kaosu looked at Naruto. Naruto scratched the back of his head as he grinned sheepishly, "Um. . .got anything to eat?"_

_"Yes."_

_"Got any ramen?"_

_Kaosu shrugged, "I'll see what we have."_

* * *

"So, I think you are ready for some real shinobi training," Kaosu stated. "And unfortunately that's not my forte. So I've gathered the six paths you shall use. Each one is an S-class Shinobi so they can help you with your elemental and shinobi training."

Naruto was surprised but nodded. He knew very well that Kaosu's training was only to prepare his body for the techniques utilized by the Rikudo Sennin through his memories. In all reality he hadn't recieve any shinobi training in three months as Kaosu wasn't in fact a shinobi other than he could tree-walk and water-walk. Though he was very curious who his six paths were going to be. He mentioned his desire to finally utilize the six paths and Kaosu took him to where six coffins were in Uzushiogakure. Naruto looked at Kaosu with a raised eyebrow. The older man just shrugged, "It's a surprise."

Naruto sighed and sent his chakra into the six bodies hidden from him. When the bodies gained life and the coffin doors fell opened, Naruto gasped. Before him were Shodai, Nidaime, Sandaime, and Yondaime Hokages including two red-haired women he didn't immediately recognize. What surprised him even more was how they all collapsed gasping for breath.

"What the heck just happened?" the Shodai Hokage asked. He was the first to stand up. "And why do I have seven fields of vision?"

"I don't know," answered his brother. "But perhaps these two know."

The six formerly dead Kage-level shinobi blinked as they saw who was in front of him. Two of them gasped. They walked towards the two and bent down to Naruto's level.

"N-Naruto. . ." they struggled to say. Naruto just smiled.

"Hello otou-san, okaa-san."

Tears built up in the three of their eyes, "NARUTO!"

Minato and Kushina jolt forward and hugged their son as tight as they could. Naruto did the same to his parents. The other four paths were starting to get an idea of what was going on but were still very lost.

"Naruto," Minato asked. "How are we here? Where are we? And what the hell happened to your eyes?"

"Don't you mean our eyes, otou-san?" Naruto asked smirking

They all blinked and looked at each other. They quickly realized they all had the same eyes as well as metal piercing sticking out of there skin across their bodies.

"Um, I'm pretty sure I speak for everyone here when I ask what exactly is going on here?" Mito spoke and everyone nodded.

Naruto pointed at his one-time sensei, "Ask him."

They all looked at the cloak man before he smiled, "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Mahotsukai Kaosu. I am the Mortal Harbinger of Yami, the God of Darkness."

All six gasped slightly in shock. Hiruzen was the first one to recover and speak, "You are the harbinger of Yami?"

Kaosu nodded, "Yes, I am."

They all looked at each other. Hashirama decided to speak, "So what are we doing here?"

"Well, you see, let me explain."

**About 1 hour later. . .**

"Okay, let me see if I've got this," Minato said. All six ex-Konoha shinobi were sitting in a semi-circle around Kaosu and Naruto. "We have been chosen to be the Six Paths for the reincarnation of the Rikudo Sennin, who is my SON, and we are to train him in more advanced shinobi ways and in the elemental arts to help him grow to be as strong as his predecessor."

"And my son was abused by the village ignoring my husband's finally request to keep my baby boy safe," Kushina continued glaring at Hiruzen, who was sweating profusely. The old say was indeed true: 'Hell hath no fury like that of a woman's scorn'.

"It's not the old man's fault, Kushina," Kaosu stated gaining the attention of the others. "I have visited Konoha on many occasions since I picked up Naruto as a student. Ever since the Kyuubi attack the civilian council has bid for more and more power. To this day they've gained enough to equal the shinobi council and the Hokage herself."

Most of them just groaned and shook their heads. Hashirama sighed, "It appears as if Konoha is slowly losing its Will of Fire."

"And hopefully we can stop that and return the Will of Fire to the village," Naruto said. The others nodded.

"Now onto other business," Tobirama spoke. "You mentioned us each have different abilities due to our separate paths. What are they?"

Naruto smirked and nodded his head, "Well, otou-san, you are the Deva Path. You have control over gravity."

Minato nodded.

"Okaa-san, you are the Animal Path. You have the ability to summon any animal; no contracts required."

"Sweet," she said smirking.

"Mito-san, you are the Asura Path. You have the ability to summon and use any weapon you can imagine."

Mito smirked and nodded.

"Tobirama-san, you are the Human Path. You have the ability to read people's mind and tear their souls from their bodies."

"I see," The former Hokage said as he thought this over.

"Hashirama-san, you are the Preta Path. You have the ability to absorb any and all chakra attacks."

"So, ninjutsu is useless against me?" Hashirama asked amused. Naruto nodded and the Shodai grinned. "That's useful."

"And jiji-san, you are the Naraka Path. You have the ability to summon the King of Hell?"

Hiruzen cocked his eyebrow, "The King of Hell?"

"Yes, with the King of Hell you are allowed to interrogate people. You can telling if they are telling the truth or lying and have their souls devoured by him if they lie. You also have the ability to revive the other paths should they ever be defeated for whatever reason."

"So the Kami no Shinobi is the path we need to keep alive at all times, huh?" Minato asked smirking. "That shouldn't be too hard."

They all laughed. Naruto turned to his ex-sensei and asked, "Hey Kaosu-sensei."

"Kaosu-san, Naruto," Kaosu sighed. "I'm not your sensei anymore."

"Fine, Kaosu-san, but is it okay if I go to practice my stealth on a bit of a mission before I begin my training."

The other's look at him strangely.

"What you have in mind, Rikudo-sama?" Kaosu asked saying the Naruto's title sort of playfully.

Naruto ignored his sensei's jibe smirked and said, "I just want to see how my former home is doing."

* * *

Konohagakure. Once the greatest of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, Konoha had fallen on to incredibly hard times. Since Naruto's kidnapping things had gone into an economic depression.

After the Retrieval Mission, word had spread quickly of Naruto's disappearance. But while most of the shinobi did see the seriousness of Naruto's kidnapping and had even started seeing him as Naruto and not the demon he held, the civilians were a completely different matter. They were happy he was gone. That the demon could no longer attempt hurt them in anyway. They threw parties and the like and celebrated that the 'demon brat' was now gone.

Many of the shinobi were in disgust. Not only was Naruto not the demon, he held the demon back on a daily basis. Even more so, even after the villagers made his childhood a living hell, Naruto still found it in himself to save their lives during the Oto and Suna Invasion and to fight the Uchiha brat to get him back into the village. And this was how they repaid him. The Konoha 11, or those who respected Naruto among the Konoha 11, were easily the most brutal against the villagers who celebrated Naruto's disappearance. Even Shikamaru would put in the effort to stop the civilians.

Unfortunately for Konoha, the celebrations of their young hero's disappearance didn't go unnoticed by its allies.

Suna, Spring, Wave, and Tea nations, after hearing what Konoha populace did to the one person who made them their allies, cut off trade with Konoha and unanimously agreed to trade with each other for resources. The blow crippled Konoha.

The Godaime Hokage, Senju Tsunade, was busy with the Great Kage Paperwork Curse. Everyone in Konoha had been working overtime day in and day out for the pass three months to make up for budget cuts made by their daimyo. Despite this, Tsunade still always smirked at the thought of their feudal lord's visit. Simply remembering the Fire Daimyo tear the civilian council a new one always made her grin.

* * *

_**Flashback**_

_**About 2 months earlier. . .**_

_The civilians were very nervous and were uncontrollably shifting under the gaze of the Fire Daimyo, who was glaring at them with pure hate. The gaze of the Hokage and the shinobi council was comforting in comparison and they weren't exactly smiling. Well, the Hokage was but it was more like a 'Haha, You are fucked' grin._

_"So, let me just tell you what your actions have caused," the daimyo said in a very calm but very unnerving voice. "Suna, Spring, Wave, and Tea have all ended trade with us."_

_The council was in instant uproar._

_"What?! Why would they do that?!"  
_

_"We have treaties! They can't do this!"_

_"We should show them why we are the greatest shinobi village!"_

_"SILENCE!" the Daimyo shouted out furiously. The entire civilian council shut up instantly. The shinobi council was shaking their heads. Their civilian counterparts were only making things worse. The Daimyo pointed at the civilian side and shouted, "THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!"_

_The council shrunk in fear of their lord. One council member managed to squeak out, "Our fault?"_

_"YES! YOUR DAMN FAULT!" the Daimyo roared. The council seemed like an infant compared to the biju that was their feudal lord. Tsunade smirked. They were squirming and she was enjoying every minute of it._

_"Serves you right, bastards," she thought._

_"BECAUSE OF YOU AND THE CIVILIANS YOU REPRESENT THESE NATIONS HAVE CUT OFF ALL TRADE WITH US!" Daimyo shouted, still downright furious._

_"My lord," Danzo spoke up._

_"WHAT IS IT?!"_

_"What is it that we've done to gain such hate from our allies?" Danzo said calmly. "I don't recall doing anything against them."_

_"It's not what you fools did to them," Tsunade spoke up glaring at them. "It's what you did to the one person who convinced them to ally with us."_

_"And who is this person we have disrespected so?"_

_"One Uzumaki Naruto, whom you've been celebrating the kidnapping of for the past couple weeks."_

_There was a stunned silence from the civilian council. They were gaping with eyes wide. Tsunade began to count down in her mind, "5. . . 4. . . 3. . . 2. . . 1."_

_"WHAT?!"_

_"They turned us away because we celebrated the removal of the demon?!"_

_"This is outrageous!"_

_"That demon doesn't deserve anything for what we've suffered!"_

_"SILENCE!" the Daimyo's voice rumbled with ungodly fury. From the size of an infant the council shrunk to the size of ants. They were cowering with fear. There Feudal Lord seemed angry enough to have them all executed in the most ungodly painful way possible. "That 'demon' is the only reason we are allies with the Wave, Spring, and Tea. That 'demon' was the won who defeated the one-tails jinchuuriki and convinced him to leave the battle. That 'DEMON' is the only thing keeping the Kyuubi no Kitsune at bay and yet you KAMI DAMNED CIVILIANS KEPT ABUSING HIM?! WHAT IF ONE OF THOSE TIME OF ABUSE THE DEMON ESCAPED?! NO ONE WOULD'VE BEEN ABLE TO STOP IT! YOU WOULD'VE BROUGHT UPON YOURSELVES YOUR OWN DESTRUCTION!"_

_The shinobi in the room didn't know whether the civilians were silent because of their lord's speech, because they were ashamed, or because they were terrified. But most of them really didn't care._

_"I am cutting Konoha's budget," the Daimyo proclaimed. "This is to make up for the loss of income we have had. Also, because the civilians are the cause of all this, they shall have their taxes tripled to help pay for things Konoha needs to survive."_

_"My lord," a councilman exclaimed shocked. "You can't be serious!"_

_"Did I stutter?" the Daimyo rhetorically asked and with a very cold gaze at the man who dared question him. The Daimyo took a deep breath and stated, "Now, let's continue with our next subject: The Uchiha Traitor."_

_The civilian council paled and many cried on the inside. Most felt their wallets get significantly lighter. But all of them knew that this day was going to get a hell of a lot worse for them all._

* * *

"_Serves you all right, you bastards,_" Tsunade thought snickering to herself. The civilians were struggling to make ends meat due to the taxes imposed on them by the daimyo. It seemed karma was back with a vengeance, though from Tsunade's perspective it still had a long way to go before it was done. As for what happened to the Uchiha it pretty much enraged and horrified the council, not that she cared. The Uchiha had his chakra and sharingan sealed for six months and for that same amount of time he was under house arrest. His only visitors were those he had gotten permission from the Hokage herself. Naturally, he received very few.

She sighed to herself. Despite the civilians position under the great hatred of their Daimyo, they still somehow managed to be able to pull the strings in Konoha. She suspected the elders Danzo, Koharu, and Homura had something to do with it but she didn't have any physical evidence.

And she couldn't do anything without evidence.

She groaned as she was about to get back to her paperwork, but she thanked Kami as a knock came from the door.

"Yes?" she asked and Shizune entered. "What is it, Shizune."

"We've just received a message from Jiraiya-sama."

"And what is it?" Tsunade asked hiding her anxiousness.

"One of Jiraiya-sama's spies has report seeing a man that matches the description Kakashi gave us buying supplies in Wave Country."

Tsunade was instantly on her feet, "What?! Where'd he go after that?"

"Apparently, he stayed at an inn in the settlement he was at but was gone by morning with only a 'thank you' note and some extra money for the room."

Tsunade sat back down and rubbed her chin in thought, "ANBU!"

They appeared instantly beside Shizune, "Yes, Hokage-sama?"

"Tell Shikaku, Kakashi, and Tsume that I want them here now. I want their opinions on this."

"Hai, Hokage-sama," they replied before vanishing.

"Naruto, we're finally on your trail," Tsunade whispered to herself, hoping to Kami herself that somehow it wasn't too late.

* * *

Hyuuga Hinata was slowly making her way through Konoha. She still thought about Naruto. She hoped to Kami he was alright. She and her comrades had changed over the last couple of months. The Konoha 12 was now the Konoha 10, at least until Sasuke was allowed back into the Shinobi force, which she and many of her comrades were not going to be happy about.

The members of Konoha 12, or as it once had been, who respected Naruto's sacrifices and what he put up with had all trained very hard to be able to surpass their senseis. They knew that if the kidnapper could oust Kakashi as easily they did, they knew they'd have to be significantly stronger to beat him. Even Shikamaru had put in some effort to training though he still complained a lot. He was getting that much closer to beating his father in shogi and his old man was very impressed. He had even done some negotiations with Suna and had managed to convince the Kazekage to still allow Konoha shinobi to enter Suna. Shikamaru had commented that 'That's as good as it's going to get for now.'

Hinata herself had changed the most over the passed three months. She was more determined than all her comrades in the Konoha 10 to get Naruto back if there was any hope for it being possible. She trained very hard, even asking Lee and Neji for some help. Her confidence had soared, determination to live up to Naruto's level of confidence swelled in her eyes. She even visited Ichiraku Ramen rather often and had began good friends with the two cooks who had been so nice to Naruto in the past.

She sighed as she continued on through the village towards the training grounds. She could never stop think about he missing crush and she never wanted to. She whispered quietly to herself, "Naruto, please be alright."

* * *

Outside the gate, two figures approached. One was an young man with long black hair and with bandages over his eyes. He had a cane he used as a walking stick. The other was a young boy wearing shades and a bandanna that covered his hair. He also had a coat covering the bottom half of his face. When they reached the gates they were stopped by the gate guards, "What is your business in Konoha?"

"Just passing through," the man with bandages over his eyes. He looked at the guard only after he had spoken. "We'll be gone by tomorrow.

The guard nodded but the other looked at him strangely, "Why are your eyes bandaged?"

"My oji-san was born without eyes," the boy said speaking. "We can't afford the artificial ones."

"And you, boy, what's your excuses?"

"Suffered really bad burns as a kid. Horribly scared my body."

The one guard looked ready to retort but his comrade stopped him. "Leave them alone, Kotetsu, they're fine."

The guard looked at them, "Forgive my partner for asking so many questions. You must write your names down and then we can let you through."

The two nodded and the young man and the boy wrote their names down: _Nisemono Toshiro_ and _Nisemono Keiji_ respectively. The two guards let them by and the duo thanked them. When they had left Kotetsu turned to his best friend, "Didn't they look the least bit suspicious to you?"

"They did. That's why when the Sandaime's grandson and his team arrive to pick the paper up I'll tell him to inform the Hokage. There wasn't any shinobi I could inform otherwise."

Kotetsu nodded at the answer and grumbled as they got back to working on guarding the gate.

* * *

After they had passed the guards the boy looked at the man, "Told you we didn't need to resort to a Henge or to your Dark Stealth."

"Yeah, yeah I know. I owe you 100 yen now," Kaosu grumbled as he used his other senses to continue to walk. "But don't you think that they are suspicious of us now?"

"Maybe but we'll be gone before they have the chance to investigate us."

"Fine, you go find your friends. I have date with the Hokage to keep."

"Isn't bad enough that Ero-sennin wants to date, baa-chan?" Naruto asked looking at him. Kaosu deadpanned.

"It's an expression, kid."

"Yeah, a bad one."

With that Naruto walked down a different street. Kaosu sighed and shook his head, "Damn kid."

With that, Kaosu continued down the path towards the Hokage Tower.

* * *

Naruto, still in disguise, walked down the crowded streets of Konoha. He was looking around and so far not much had changed. He thought about going to Ichiraku but decided that wouldn't be a good idea because that could lead to people discovering who he was and, as much as he wanted to, couldn't do that just yet. He still had a lot of training to do before then. Just as he finished his musings he came upon some of his old friends: Neji, Kiba, Choji, and Shikamaru. They were siting down at a table outside a small restaurant. Naruto decided to listen in. He got as close as he could as casually as he could and focused his hearing towards the conversation.

"So Jiraiya really got a lead on the guy who kidnapped Naruto?" Choji asked.

"Yeah," Shikamaru answered. "Kakashi-sensei, my father, and Kiba's mother were all called to the Hokage's office."

"_Oh, smooth one, Kaosu_," Naruto thought groaning inwardly. "_Way to keep a low profile._"

"Have you told Hinata yet?" Neji asked. Shikamaru shook his head, "Haven't seen her today."

Naruto's eyes narrowed, "Why would she care about this kind of information. She was so shy especially around me."

"Where do you think she is anyway?" Choji asked.

"Probably training I would think," Kiba answered. "She wants to be ready when it's time to face the guy who kidnapped, Naruto."

"_Kidnapper, huh_?" Naruto smirked to himself. "_I'll have to use that as a nickname for Kaosu now_."

"She truly does love him doesn't she?" Choji asked rhetorically. Naruto's eyes widened at that and he intently listened in for the answer.

"Yes, she loves that dobe so much she's willing to train to the extent that Gai-sensei trains us to get him back," Neji answered. "It's too bad she could never bring herself to confess to that oblivious baka without fainting."

"Yeah," Kiba smiled sadly.

Naruto was stunned, "_Hinata. She loved me. No, she still loves me. Despite what her family as told her she still loves me._"

Naruto walked down an ally and dropped his disguise. He then raced off to find the Hyuuga heiress, keeping himself well hidden from all eyes as he did so.

"_Hinata, I'm so sorry I was such a baka_," Naruto thought to himself. "_I will make it up now. I promise._"

Naruto looked ahead as he approached the training grounds, "_And Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto never breaks a promise._"

* * *

At the training grounds, Hinata was about to begin with stamina training when she heard someone land behind her. She turned around and activated her Byakugan, "Who's there?"

She could see the intruder's chakra. It seemed so familiar but was heavily supressed, which suprised her. When she got know answer she shouted out, "I know your there; there's no use in hiding."

The figure stepped out of the shadows and she gasped. There before her was Naruto. He was no longer in his 'Kill-Me-Now Jumpsuit' but was now in orange and white training gear with a white haori over it. But Naruto's eyes were the biggest different. They were no longer blue but were now violet with six rings rippling out of the center.

She couldn't move. She was just too surprised by this. However, she did managed to stutter out, "N-N-Naruto?"

He smiled warmly at her, "Hello, Hinata-chan."

* * *

**Please don't expect future updates to be this fast. I have a lot of free time right now so that's why I can do this fast. Also, yeah, I kind of changed around the Asura Paths abilities a bit. Still, it's similar in a way. Anyway, thank you for reading and please review!**

**~Teddypro**

**Response to Reviews**

**{the DragonBard} - **Interesting, but the Sakura element ruined it for me. I'm just getting tired of the Sakura bashing.

**_Answer_: **Look, this is a new fanfiction and I have fully decided where it's going to go just yet. You could suggest to me to not bash her or to bash on her less as time goes on instead of saying that the fic is ruined. I know you have your own opinion but you don't have to shove you opinion in my face and say that I just ruined the fic for you. I'm always open to suggestions to what I can do for my stories but I will not tolerate you saying stuff like that. Because to me it sounds like your trying to say it's your way or the highway and I do not accept that at all. Okay, rant done. Next one.

**{Rikudo Naruto} - **Good Story . I hope new updates .

**_Answer_: **It's 'I hope for new updates soon'. Okay, grammar Nazi time over. Also, yeah, it came soon.**  
**

**{ProtoPhinbella} - **Okay the rinnegan aspect alone is intriging I'm watching this one

**_Answer_: **Good. Glad I got you interested.

**{Rose Tiger} -** Sakura is just awful! Please keep going!

_**Answer**_**: **Like I mentioned in the response to 'the DragonBard' I might consider making her grow better in time. Will the bashing stop soon. No. Not all changes are fast at all. Most of the time it is slow for such opinions to change. But yet, currently Sakura is awful. And yes I like your please and I will keep going. ;-)

***Note: I will only do 4 Responses per chapter and it will only be from the previous chapter that I will respond to. Thank you to all who reviewed!**


	3. What Really Happened

**Disclaimer - I do not own Naruto.**

**Chapter 3 - What Really Happened**

* * *

_**Last time. . .**_

_"I know your there; there's no use in hiding."_

_The figure stepped out of the shadows and she gasped. There before her was Naruto. He was no longer in his 'Kill-Me-Now Jumpsuit' but was now in orange and white training gear with a white haori over it. But Naruto's eyes were the biggest different. They were no longer blue but were now violet with six rings rippling out of the center._

_She couldn't move. She was just too surprised by this. However, she did managed to stutter out, "N-N-Naruto?"_

_He smiled warmly at her, "Hello, Hinata-chan."_

* * *

Hinata was in shock. Her long time crush. . . no, love, was standing write before her. Hinata instantly went back to her stuttering at the sight of him, "N-N-Naruto. H-how i-is it p-p-possible? K-Kakashi-s-sensei s-s-said you w-were k-kidnapped."

Naruto put hand to chin and spoke out loud of his playful musings, "Well, I wouldn't call it kidnapping really. Kaosu-sensei really only took my so that I could live out my true calling."

"W-what?" Hinata asked confused. "Y-you w-w-weren't k-kidnapped? K-Kaosu-s-sensei? T-true c-c-calling? N-Naruto, w-what are y-you t-talking a-a-about?"

Naruto grinned, "First Hinata, lose the stutter. You sounded cuter without it."

Hinata was cherry red at that statement, "_Did he just call me cute?!_"

"I-I will try, N-Naruto."

"Call me, Naruto-kun, Hinata-chan

"_Ch-ch-chan?!__ Did he just call me -chan?! Wait?! Did he just ask me to call him -kun?!_" Hinata nodded and took a deep breath and said, "How is the N-Naruto-kun?"

Naruto shook his head smiling, "It's good enough for now."

Naruto smiled at her and sat down on the grass. He patted the ground next to her and she sat down next to him.

"Now answering your questions. No, I wasn't kidnapped per say though now I'm going to be using that to tease Kaosu-sensei," Naruto snickered to himself. Hinata blinked, "Who's Kaosu-sensei?"

"Hey, Hinata-chan your stutter's gone!" Naruto laughed and Hinata face melted into a darker red if that was at all possible. "But to answer your question, Kaosu-sensei is the one who took me."

"He was the one who took you?!" Hinata asked. "Why?"

"To help me become what I was meant to be," Hinata looked at him both strangely and with a hint of worry.

"What do you mean, Naruto-kun?"

Naruto took a deep breath, "You know the old story of the Rikudo Sennin?"

Hinata nodded, "You mean the old myth of the founder of ninjutsu?"

"It's no myth, Hinata."

Hinata's eyes widened in surprise, "What?"

"There's more Hinata," Naruto said looking at her seriously. "You have noticed the change in my eyes?"

"Yes," Hinata nodded. "What happened? What are they?"

"These are the dojutsu used by the Rikudo Sennin," Naruto explained. "The Rinnegan."

"What?!" Hinata said surprised. Naruto's hand quickly went over her mouth and he whispered, "Shh, Hinata! I don't want anyone to know I'm here. Please quiet down."

Hinata nodded but asked, "Naruto. How do you have the eyes of the Rikudo Sennin?"

Naruto took another deep breath before speaking, "Because Hinata, I am the Rikudo Sennin Reborn. The Rikudo Sennin and I are one in the same person."

* * *

Kaosu had managed to get out of his disguise and was using his shadow stealth technique to glide across the floor of the Hokage Tower as a mere faded shadow. He didn't move rapidly as to not draw attention but he slowly made it into the Hokage's Office. He hid next to the door. He took special note of where everyone in the room was; the Hokage herself, her assistant, the three jonin present, and the ANBU hidden within the office itself.

"_I'm in luck_," he thought. "_They are just starting the meeting_."

"I'm surprised you showed up on time, Hatake-san," Tsunade commented slightly amused.

"You mentioned it had to do with Naruto so I came as quickly as I could," the Copy-nin answered. Kaosu blinked, "_Eh, what?_"

"So, what is it you need from us, Hokage-sama?" Inuzuka Tsume asked.

"I need your opinions on something," the Godaime answered. "Something very important."

"Troublesome," Shikaku grunted earning a glare from the three women in the room. Ignoring the comment Kakashi spoke up.

"And what would that be, Hokage-sama?"

"Recently, one of Jiraiya's spies spotted the man Kakashi saw taking Naruto," the instantly got everyone's attention. It especially got Kaosu's attention who was wide-eyed at the very prospect of being discovered.

"What? Where is he?" Kakashi asked desperately. In his mind, he was overjoyed that he finally had a chance to redeem himself, "_Naruto. I hope it's not too late. I need to apologize for what I've done. For neglecting you, for not being able to save you, and for not protecting you when your 'teammates' went too far. If. . . no, when you return I will treat you as I should have as a sensei. Not to mention preventing Sasuke and Sakura from attacking you after beating the Uchiha brat down._"

It was true, neither Sasuke or Sakura had really changed much since Naruto's kidnapping. Sasuke was enraged that he didn't get away and of the treatment he was getting as 'The Last Uchiha', namely being sealed and placed under house arrest. He didn't care that Naruto had been taken and the rest of the Konoha 11, as he refused to call it Konoha 10 since he still considered himself the best of them, refused to do anything involving the Uchiha heir.

All of them expect for Sakura that is. Sakura hadn't changed her view on Naruto. She was willing to let him stay kidnapped and let Kami knows what ever was happening to him continue as long as she had the damn Uchiha brat by her side. Consequently, Kakashi, disgusted by the fact that they had completely let their teammate to rot, refused to train them any longer and, with Tsunade's permission, was allowed to dissolve Team Seven.

Needless to say, the Civilian Council, the Harunos, and the Uchiha were not very happy. Kakashi didn't care and said that he wasn't going to train them and to find somebody else. They did just that. They had found a jonin loyal to the Civilian side to train Sakura and Sasuke, once he was out from under house arrest.

Kakashi nowadays was either helping the other teams train from time to time, substituting for their senseis, or tagging along on their missions as an extra set of hands. How this happened was when most of the Konoha 10, as he continually called it to irritate the council, proclaimed their desire to grow stronger to be able to help defeat the man who kidnapped Naruto, he knew that he now need to make sure they were ready. The guy had given him a Gai-like strike without touching him and in the same instant managed to evade him so well it was as if he never existed. They would need all the strength they could get. The other senseis and their teams welcomed Kakashi's training with open arms, even though he was still always about an hour or two late.

"He was seeing gathering supplies in a small settlement in the Wave. He vanished before day broke however," Tsunade answered, letting the information sink in. Kaosu on the other hand was inwardly groaning, "_Kami damn it! I hate spies when they're used on me! When Naruto hears this he's never going to let me live it down! Ever!_"

"So," Kakashi's face dropped in disappointment. "You still don't know where he is."

"Not exactly," Tsunade confirmed. "However, two of you are our best trackers and one of you is our best strategist. I want you to put your heads together see if you can come up with a general area he could be based on the information we know about him."

The three jonin were silent for a minute as they thought. Kakashi was the first person to speak, "Well, based on my encounter with him, I have to say he is neigh untraceable if he doesn't want to be found. So us finding him probably means he's leading us somewhere."

"_No_," Kaosu mentally cried anime tears. "_I just fucked up._"

"So you're implying he might based in the Wave?" Shikaku asked.

"Or it could be a trap he's setting up," Tsume pointed out. Kakashi and Shikaku 'hmmed' at the analysis. That was a legit point. The man had prove to have been a match for Kakashi or even more than a match for the Copy-nin due to how unimpressed he was when they first met. Shikaku then brought something else up, "What exactly did he buy anyway?"

"A lot apparently," Shizune answered. "It's a long list."

"So, he's either been doing a lot of high-ranked missions and bounty for one of the nations," Tsunade deduced. "Or he's being funded by someone."

Kaosu smiled mentally, "_Yami pays his harbingers well. Hehe._"

"Would you mind reading the list?" Shikaku asked. The other's looked at him curiously, wondering why that would matter but decided just to go along with it. Shizune pulls out the list and begin reading it.

"A hundred slabs of stone from the local quarry, a hundred blocks of iron from the local forge, a fifty planks of wood from the local lumber mill. . ."

"_Well paid, indeed_," Kaosu inwardly snicked.

"It's pretty much is the same thing the rest of the way down. It's really just materials for building and crafting until we reach food which includes but is not limited to chicken, beef, breads, and. . ."

Shizune's eyes widened at the last one, which gets Tsunade's and the other jonin's attention.

"And what Shizune-san?" Shikaku asked.

"And ramen."

While some saw this as a token of interest, Shikaku himself shrugged it off, "Could be he just likes variety."

Shizune deadpanned, "Yes, Shikaku-san, because we all know that fifty packets of instant ramen goes well with seasoned chicken and rice."

The others' blinked in surprise at this revelation. Kaosu sighed inwardly, "_Knew that kid's ramen addiction would have consequences, but no, taking away is ramen puts him into a berserk fit of rage. Hopefully his parents can keep him in line now._"

"So either this man has a ramen addiction that can match Naruto. . ." Kakashi began.

"_No way in hell._" Kaosu sweat-dropped.

"Or Naruto is still alive and is being taken care of."

"_And this is my queue_," Kaosu thought as the shadow quickly formed himself leaning on the wall next to the door. "I can vouch for that."

The inhabitants of the room instantly jolted to face him. Kakashi recognized him immediately on got ready to fight, "You! You were the one who kidnapped Naruto!"

Upon hearing this, the other inhabitants joined Kakashi in a fighting stance. Even the ANBU appeared from their various hiding spots with weapons ready. To their surprised the man looked up at the ceiling and put his hands behind his head. What surprised them more was the nonchalant musing he spoke to seemingly no one, "I wouldn't exactly call it a kidnapping. I like to call it necessary intervention."

"I don't care what you call it," Tsunade said in a very low and dangerous tone. "You took a shinobi of Konoha away. You are going to spend some time in the Interrogation and Torture Department until you tell us where he is."

"Oh please," Kaosu scoffed. "One: your 'Interrogation and Torture Department' doesn't scare me. Trust me. My great-grandmother is scarier."

Kaosu involuntarily shivered at the last part. "Two: I evaded Mr. Cyclops here in a split second. What makes you think the same won't happen here? Third: Naruto is fine. In fact, the boy's better than fine. He's improving by leaps and bounds since I picked him up. Four: Why should I bring him back if the village doesn't want him?"

"YOU LIE!" Kakashi shouted. "The boy is well respect by Konoha! He belongs here."

Kaosu's eyes narrowed, "Yes, because your populace made that _so _clear after they had learned he was gone."

That struck a nerve in all of them. They felt guilty and rightfully so. What he spoke was true. Kaosu wasn't done, however.

"Don't think Naruto hasn't heard about what they did. All the parties and such. He knows full well what has gone on here. However, he is also aware of how many of the shinobi did stand-up for him and believe me when I say he does appreciate that."

The jonin didn't know whether or not to be ashamed or relieved. Tsunade, Shizune, and Kakashi were fighting back tears at the man's words. Somehow, they knew what he was saying was true.

"Naruto is doing very well, however, due to recent events he can't reveal himself to you just yet. Believe me, he wants to but he knows now is not the time."

There was a pause before Kakashi asked, "When can we see him again?"

Kaosu thought a moment before he said, "For those who wish to see him go to the ruins of Uzushiogakure exactly two years from today."

Their eyes widened. They were in Uzushio this whole time? How did they manage that? The place was crawling with traps and the like.

"And Tsunade-sama."

Tsunade snapped out of her thoughts when she heard her name and looked at the man, "Naruto wanted me to pass this message on to you and I am saying this verbatim: '_I'm okay baa-chan. Don't worry about me. We'll see each other again soon. And please know that even though I didn't know you long, I sort of saw a mother-like figure in you_'."

Tsunade sat back into her chair. She couldn't fight back the tears any longer. Those words held so much meaning. She knew the man was telling the truth, "Thank you, Mr. . ."

She paused realizing she had never gotten his name. She looked at him and he smiled, "Right. My name is Kaosu. Mahotsukai Kaosu. I am the Harbinger of Yami, the God of Darkness."

With that, Kaosu vanished, leaving the inhabitants of the room stunned one last time before leaving. Tsunade was the first to recover and cleared her throat to get everyone's attention, "This is to be an S-class secret that never leaves this room. If Naruto wants to remain hidden for now, so be it. Also, Shizune, I want a message sent out to Jiraiya. Tell him I want him back here now. He's currently in the town Kaosu was last spotted at."

The others nodded. Tsunade took a deep breath, "Now could you all leave? I need a minute alone."

The all complied. After they had all left, Tsunade began to cry. She only thought one thing, "_Naruto._"

* * *

Hinata was looking at Naruto with complete and utter shock. She had just been told that her long time love was the Rikudo Sennin's reincarnation, "N-N-Naruto-kun. . . y-your the R-Rikudo S-Sennin?"

"Stuttering, Hinata-chan," Naruto said reminding her pleasantly. "But yes I am the Rikudo Sennin. Or his reincarnation at least. I have recently received all the memories of my past life and know all his techniques. I have spent the last three months getting my body prepare to be able to handle his-er my techniques. Man, this whole reincarnation thing is confusing!"

Hinata was gaping. She couldn't believe it, yet the proof was right there in front of her. She finally managed to find her voice after a minute or two, "H-Have you told t-the others yet?"

Naruto smiled sadly at her, "No. In fact, I wasn't even suppose to reveal myself as of yet."

Hinata's eyes widened again, "What?! Why?"

"Because I need to stay hidden to train. I have to be ready to fully take up the mantle of the Rikudo Sennin before I reveal myself as his reincarnation to the world. Don't get me wrong, the last three months have made me a lot stronger you know with the Sennin's memories and techniques and all, but I haven't had any real shinobi training in three months and I need to train in that area for a long time before I'm at the level worthy of the Sennin."

"I-I understant, Naruto-kun," Hinata said. She then did probably the boldest move of her life. She leaned up against him and held his arm close to her body. Naruto blinked in surprised but he relaxed a few short seconds afterward. They sat there awhile before Hinata decided to speak.

"Naruto-kun," Hinata whispered. "I-I know what's sealed inside you."

Hinata felt Naruto's body tense at this information but before he could say anything she got up and stared right at his eyes. Her face was but inches from his. "The entire Konoha 12 knows, or what's left of it. And we don't care Naruto. In fact, we respect you so much more for what you've been through. You protected us every single day and had the perseverance to stick it through despite what those ungrateful villagers had done. I admire you, Naruto-kun. More then you will every know."

Naruto was silent for awhile. He was stunned, "_They know about the Fox and they don't hate me? I can't believe I doubted them_."

Then Naruto remembered exactly why he came to find her in the first place, "You admire me, Hinata-chan? Don't you mean you love me?"

Hinata froze. Naruto noted that her face went a darker shade of red the his okaa-san's hair. Hinata put her two index fingers together and managed to squeak out, "H-H-How d-d-did y-y-y-you f-find o-out?"

Naruto smiled, "I overheard Neji, Shikamaru, Kiba, and Choji talking about it when I was in disguise earlier and I listened in on their conversation. It's the only reason I'm talking with you right now."

Hinata and Naruto were silent for a moment before Naruto looked at Hinata apologetically, "I'm sorry for being so dense and not noticing it. I hope you can forgive me and that some how I can make it up to you."

Hinata managed to muster her courage up for a reply, "O-of course I-I forgive you, N-Naruto-kun. I could n-never hate you. And I you d-don't have to make it u-up to me."

Naruto thought a moment then smirked, "I want to though and I think I know how to start making it up to you, Hinata-chan."

With that, Naruto quickly leaned forward an planted a long, loving kiss on Hinata's lips. If her face could have gone a darker shade of red, it probably would have. Hinata was screaming in her mind even as it melted away from the bliss of finally kissing Naruto, "_Oh Kami, he's kissing me! Naruto-kun is KISSING ME!_"

Naruto shortly broke the kiss and smiled at her. He then laughed a bit at her expression before he actually started getting worried her face was frozen like that, "Uh, Hinata-chan? Hello?"

Naruto snapped his fingers in front of her face a couple of times before she finally snapped out of her blank stare. It took a minute to process what had happened but after she had fully processed it again she looked straight into Naruto's Rinnegan eyes, "N-N-Naruto-kun. . ."

Naruto nodded with a genuine smile and before he knew it Hinata was latching onto him in a tight hug. Naruto was so surprised by the sudden movement that he fell backwards. By the time he had registered what had happened, Hinata was already hugging him tightly while laying on top of him. She buried her face into the crook of his neck and started to sob softly. Naruto was confused, "Hinata-chan? Why are you crying? Did I do something wrong?"

Hinata managed to look up at him, tears streaming down her face, "No, N-Naruto-kun. I-I'm not c-crying because I'm s-sad. I'm crying b-because. . . because I-I'm j-just so happy!" she reburied her face into his next and continued to sob softly. Naruto blinked not quite understanding but in the end he just mentally shook it off and returned the embrace. She responded by burying her face deeper.

* * *

Kaosu was finally in the general area Naruto was and was jumping through the trees toward where he could feel his life force, which was an ability he had picked up from his own sensei before he took his place as the Harbinger of Yami. When he finally reached the training ground, the first thing he noticed was that he was with someone, "_Damn kid, I told him just to eavesdrop not to reveal himself. Doesn't this damn kid liste-_"

His thought process instantly stopped when he saw that Naruto was with a girl who he was embracing and also took note that the girl was crying into the crook of the boy's neck. Kaosu paused and blinked a few times before smiled, "_I think I'll let this one slide_."

He then jumped off, making sure no one else approached the, dare he say it, adorable scene.

* * *

It was awhile later that Hinata finally managed to stop her sobbing. Naruto helped her sit up. They were silent for a bit before Naruto spoke, "Hinata-chan. I have to leave now. Promise me you won't tell anyone you saw me."

Hinata nodded, "I promise, Naruto-kun."

Hinata then topped her earlier bold action by leaning forward and giving Naruto a quick kiss on the cheek. "And Naruto-kun. Please remember that I will always love you."

Naruto smiled as he wiped a tear from his eye, "Thank you, Hinata-chan. That means a lot to me."

Naruto stood up and then he helped Hinata up. He then spoke to Hinata one last time, "Now don't stop training, you hear! I expect you to be a jonin next time we meet."

Hinata nodded determinedly, "Of course, Naruto-kun."

"Oh, and before I forget. Here's something I have been holding on to for awhile," Naruto pulled out a scroll and handed it to Hinata. "Since I can recreate it it's no problem that you have it. I knew I had to give you this once I found out how dense I was not to notice your feelings for me."

Hinata blinked, "What is it, Naruto-kun?"

Naruto winked at her, "You'll just have to read to find out. Oh, and don't let anyone know about it. Alright?"

Hinata nodded and smiled. Naruto winked again and bid farewell, vanishing in a shunshin of swirling leaves. After Naruto had left, Hinata took the scroll and opened it. Her eyes widened in shock at what she saw.

* * *

It wasn't long that Naruto was joined by his ex-sensei. Naruto grinned, "There you are, Yukai-han-sensei. Heard you got noticed in the Wave during your last supply run."

Kaosu deadpanned, "Shut it, lover boy. I have no need for your complaints. Though I do say you picked a nice first girlfriend, kid."

Naruto blushed red with embarrassment, "Uh, you saw that?"

Kaosu snickered, "Oh yes, definitely. And let's not forget you share your eyesight with you paths as well. Just wait until we get home."

Naruto's face paled and his eyes widened with horror, "Oh man, I should have blocked off my vision to them before all that. Crap. Now they're never going to stop teasing me!"

"**Did you forget about me, kit?**" a voice grumbled from inside Naruto's mindscape.

"_Oh great, not you too, furball._"

"**Oh yes, me too, Rikudo-sama**," the Kyuubi snickered. Naruto groaned. Sometimes he wished he hadn't opened up his connect to Kyuubi further though he had to admit the Fox's face during that meeting was priceless.

* * *

_**Flashback**_

_**About 2 and a half months ago. . . **_

_"Now, Naruto, we must deal with the Fox in your gut," Kaosu told his temporary student. Naruto listened on intently. "The Rikudo Sennin was technically Kyuubi's, and the other biju's, father. So this revelation shall be very interesting. Unfortunately, you must go in alone."_

_Naruto nodded and with a quick 'good luck' from his sensei Naruto found himself in the dank place that was his mindscape. He walked up to the cage that held the fearsome force of nature and spoke, "Hey Kurama! Wake up!"_

_"**Gaki! YOU HAVE SOME NERVE TRYING TO-**" the menacing Fox paused as he fully registered what his jailer had just said. "**What did you just call me?**"_

_"Kurama. It's the name I gave you isn't it?" Naruto spoke in a matter-of-fact manner. His eyes were closed as he smirked.  
_

_"**The name you gave me?!**" Kurama shouted. "**My name was given to me by the Rikudo Sennin! The founder of Ninjutsu****!**"_

_"I know. I'm the Sennin's reincarnation."_

_"**Of course he existed you ba-**" Kurama froze yet again and looked at the boy in disbelief as he process what he just. "**What did you just say****?**"_

_"You heard me, Kurama," Naruto said as he opened his eyes, revealing the Rinnegan. "I am the reincarnation of your creator. Your father. The Rikudo Sennin."_

_For the first time in his existance, Kurama, the Kyuubi no Kitsune, greatest of all the Biju, fainted in shock. _

_The only sound heard after that was the young Sennin breaking down laughing._

* * *

Kurama's groaned echoed from inside Naruto's mindscape, "**You're never going to let me live that down are you?**"

"_Never._"

"**Damn you, gaki.**"

"Now, lover boy," Kaosu said turning to leave. "Let's get home to begin your training."

Naruto inwardly groaned. They were never going to leave him alone about his and Hinata's relationship ever again.

"_I guess we both have something to tease the other about_," Naruto thought before both he and Kaosu took off back to Uzushiogakure.

* * *

**Again, don't expect updates this often. I just got time and motivation right now and hopefully I keep this up for some time. Also, since I never pointed it out earlier, last chapter the two used the last names of Nisemono, which basically means 'Fake' and what Naruto calls him this chapter is Yukai-han, which means 'kidnapper'. Just so you weren't confused. Thanks for reading and please review!**

**~Teddypro**

**Response to Reviews**

**{Wulan-chan} - **Update soon, please! Can you make kakanaru brothership? Cause I like that pairing very much...

**_Answer_:** I think it might sorta be going that way anyway now that I think about it. And I did it unintentionally, too. . . . . Huh.

**{Peter Kim} - **You should bash Sasuke alot since alot of people hate and loathe Sasuke including me! Will Naruto create an organization? i would like to see many characters that's powerful that's either missing nin,monk,nin,etc from the anime and manga "Naruto" join forces with Naruto like Sora(the monk that have Kyuubi power in the Fire Temple),etc and I wonder if the other containers will join with Naruto? No alliance,etc with since Konoha treated Naruto like trash so why would he wants an alliance,etc with Konoha and Nar naruto helping Konoha ,Naruto becmone a Konoiha nin again,etc.

**_Answer_: **Well, I am considering some redemption for the Uchiha eventually when Naruto puts his 'inspirational speech' ability or whatever you want to call it it work but I'm still on the edge and it could go either way. As for the organization, no, he won't form one but he will be taking over one. Nudge nudge. Wink wink.**  
**

**{JAIMOL} - **It's a great story. I did not expect him to use the bodies of the previous Kages and the Mito and Kushina.

**Answer: **SURPRISE!

**{bh} - **You are pretty good at story-telling, but you really need to work on proof reading what you submit. You used the wrong tense a number of times, which made reading the chapter a challenge. And the saying is "hell hath no fury like a woman scorned" not "a womans scorn"

_**Answer: **_Yeah, I do have a lot of spelling mistakes and the like. However, I don't really want to go back and fix them all just yet as I want to get as many chapters done before I lose either time, motivation, or both. When I get farther into the story I will go back and fix those errors. I just hope you can bare with me until then.


	4. Revelations and Plots

**Disclaimer - I do not own Naruto.**

**Chapter 4 - Revelations and Plots**

* * *

Jiraiya had returned the night before. It had been about a week since Kaosu's appearance in the Hokage Office and Tsunade was anxious to talk to Jiraiya about recent events. Finally, the self-proclaimed super pervert enter the Hokage's Office. Both Tsunade and Shizune were waiting for him.

"Hello, Tsunade-chan, Shizune-chan," Jiraiya said cheerfully. "How are you two lovely ladies doing today."

"You seem awfully cheerful after you left Konoha three months ago, Jiraiya," Tsunade pointed out. Jiraiya sighed, "I'm trying to forget about the fact of how far I'm am from locating Naruto. It's probably already too late."

"It's not. Naruto is alive and well."

Jiraiya head shot up in surprise, "Wait, you mean you know where the gaki is?! Where is he?! Let me at that damn fool of a kidnapper!"

"Jiraiya," Tsunade said with the slightest bit of steel in her voice. "Quiet and I will explain."

Jiraiya shut his trap and nodded. Tsunade sighed, "Now I want to inform you that the supposed kidnapper visited me and a few jonin last week while in this very office."

"What?!" Jiraiya shouted only to be reply by a bash on the head from the female Hokage. "Quiet, pervert."

Jiraiya quickly managed to recover, "But if that's true, why didn't you stop him? Interrogate him?"

"Because one, Naruto is unharmed and two, the man revealed his name was Mahotsukai Kaosu, the Harbinger of Yami himself."

Jiraiya was quiet for a moment. Tsunade counted down in her mind, "_5. . . 4. . . 3. . . 2. . . 1. . ._"

"WHAT?!" Jiraiya's shout echoed throughout Konoha.

* * *

Naruto was busy training with his own father, Namikaze Minato, the Deva Path, when they heard a faint '_What?!_' off in the distance. They looked at each other.

"Sounds like Ero-sennin," Naruto shrugged. "Eh, must be the wind."

"Ero-sennin?" Minato asked raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, yeah. He's your sensei, Jiraiya no Gama Sennin."

There was a moment of stunned silence from Minato. Then Naruto noticed him struggling to hold in a laugh and it just got more and more obvious until. . .

"AHAHAHAHAHA!" Minato broke down laughing. "Oh, Kami-sama! That's the perfect name for him! I wish I had come up with it!"

Naruto just gave his father a very strange look just as Kaosu and the other paths peaked around a nearby corner to see what the hell was going on.

* * *

"You mean that guy serves a god?!" Jiraiya shouted in disbelieving tone. "Are you kidding me?! How is that possible?!"

"He visited us for the soul purpose of letting us know that Naruto is okay and is training to become stronger," Tsunade answered calmly. "He says, however, we won't be able to see him for two years."

"Two years?!" Jiraiya said astonished. "How did you let that slide?!"

"He present many points that made sense and he held an air of honesty to him. To be completely honest myself the way he spoke and presented himself made me want to believe him."

"Not to mention that he did say that in two years we'd see him again," Shizune pointed out. "And that'd he be more powerful than ever before."

"Did he say where we were to see him?" Jiraiya asked suspiciously. Tsunade nodded, "He said that if we wanted to see him after two years to go to the ruins of Uzushiogakure."

Jiraiya blinked in surprise then his eyes narrowed, "Uzushio? How did he manage that? The place is crawling with seals and traps everywhere. Seals that I would never be able see all of before it was too late. Naruto isn't skilled at Fuuinjutsu and I doubt this _Kaosu_ could teach it to him, especially that fast. Only an Uzumaki would be able to remove those seals."

Tsunade blinked, "Are you saying this man is an Uzumaki?"

"Could be."

"Or," Shizune interrupted earning the two old teammates' attentions. "He was telling the truth and he really does serve Yami."

At the stare she got, Shizune decided to elaborate, "Twice he has appeared and once disappeared without leaving a trace is but a split second. Last time I checked, only the Yondaime could do that, and he had the Hiraishin to boot. I noticed that he appeared from the shadows when he revealed himself last week. Obviously, this is a trait many could associate to Yami."

"Also, Shizune and the other jonin could probably vouch for me on the fact that the aura he seemed to have around him was dark and powerful yet he came off as a normal person," Tsunade continued. "What does this tell you, Jiraiya?"

Jiraiya put his hand on his chin in thought, "It does bring the situation to light a bit more if he was."

"How so?"

"It means that it was most likely divine intervention that Kaosu went to Naruto."

Tsunade and Shizune blinked. They hadn't even considered that. The Harbinger of Yami, a God from the Sacred Realm, saving Naruto. Shizune tried to think of another scenario, "Maybe he did it out of the kindness of his heart? I mean Naruto was seriously injured."

"True," Jiraiya answered. "But remember, so was Sasuke. And don't you think it that was the case he would've brought both of them back to Konoha. They were both wearing Konoha hitai-ites. You'd think someone who served a god would know the Konoha leaf symbol in a heartbeat."

Shizune put hand to chin. Jiraiya held a strong argument. "Which begs the question: 'Why did Yami of all people want Naruto out of the village?'."

Tsunade thought back to what Kaosu had said earlier. She remembered him saying something as to why he took Naruto didn't he?

_"I wouldn't exactly call it a kidnapping. I like to call it necessary intervention."_

_"Naruto is fine. In fact, the boy's better than fine. He's improving by leaps and bounds since I picked him up."_

_"Naruto is doing very well, however, due to recent events he can't reveal himself to you just yet. Believe me, he wants to but he knows now is not the time."_

"Um. . .Tsunade?" Jiraiya voice came, snapping the Hokage out of her thought process. She looked up at him with an annoyed 'What is it' look.

"Yes."

"You blanked out for a second. What is it?"

Tsunade sighed, "I've been think back at what he said."

"And?"

"There's a couple things he said that stuck out to me. One is that he called his taking Naruto as a necessary intervention."

Jiraiya's eyes raised at that. So it was something that was planned by someone other than Kaosu if that was the case. Kaosu was probably just following orders, and if he was telling the truth and he was following Yami's orders then they were in some serious trouble.

"Also, he mentioned that ever since he took Naruto that he's been improving by quote unquote '_leaps and bounds_' and that also Naruto does want to see us again, but he knows that now isn't the proper time."

Jiraya's eyes definitely widened further, "So he's not only training Naruto in some way but. . ."

Tsunade nodded, "Yes, one of the gods, Yami or otherwise, has given Naruto some form of duty and Kaosu, Yami's Harbinger, is training him to be ready for it."

There was a long pause in the room before Jiraiya spoke, "You said they were in Uzushiogakure?"

Tsunade blinked, "Yes, that's what Kaosu mentioned. I was going to send a message to the Daimyo telling him what's going on and asking if I can take the Konoha 11 and their senseis to see see him after two years is up."

"You do that. I, however, am going now."

Jiraiya turned to leave, however, he was stopped. "Jiraiya!"

Jiraiya turned back to his teammate/Hokage and blinked once before asking, "Yes, Tsunade-hime?"

"He said Naruto would be ready in two years and Naruto agreed as well. Honestly, I think if Naruto was in any danger the Kyuubified Naruto would have already gone on a rampage by now and we'd have been notified. We haven't, however, and I am willing to trust Kaosu with Naruto's training for now. We will get him back in two years. I am willing to wait."

"But I am not, Tsunade," Jiraiya said more aggressively. "I failed Naruto as a godfather for his entire life. I am not going to let some man claiming to be the harbinger of a god train him without proving to me directly that he's trustworthy. Good day, Hokage-sama."

With that, Jiraiya shunshined out of the room. Tsunade sighed aggravated, "Baka, I hope he knows what he's doing."

"I doubt it, Hokage-sama," Shizune sighed as well. Tsunade shook her head, "I need some sake."

* * *

Danzo sat in his office within his ROOT Compound when an ANBU appeared before him. The ANBU knelt and said, "Danzo-sama, I bring news. Jiraiya of the Sennin has left again to confront the kidnapper of Uzumaki Naruto head on."

Danzo 'hmmed' to himself before dismissing the ANBU. That ANBU guard for the Hokage had been Danzo's spy and informant for neigh on ten years now. He was the one who had overheard the Sandaime talk about how the poor Jinchuuriki was in an orphanage and that was all he needed to gain more of the civilians to he side and increase his power. He used the boy as a scapegoat and every civilian and many shinobi respected him for revealing the 'demon incarnate' to them after hiding in their village for so long. And under the guise of a young Yondaime wannabee no less.

Still, karma seemed to have come back and kick him in the ass due to their predicament. The Daimyo was insanely furious at the kidnapping of the brat. He and his fellow elders and councilmen were now forced into heavy taxes due to this. Still Danzo had managed to get an foothold still in authority and amplified that. Despite their losses, the elders and the civilians held just as much power, if not more, than before. And even though Konoha lost its edge over the other villages in the Jinchuuriki department he was sure he could get Sasuke to the level of a jinchuuriki. This would be especially so when he pulled all the strings to fulfill the requirements to unlock Sasuke's Mangekyo Sharingan.

With Sasuke backing him up, it would be easy to convince the council, which the civilian side of was bidding for more and more power over Konoha's daily rituals, to make him Hokage when he _convinced_ Tsunade-hime to retire.

Then, of course, there was the most recent issue that had appeared. The supposed kidnapper who went by the name of Mahotsukai Kaosu had appeared in the Hokage's Office without either the Hokage, her assistant, the ANBU, or the three jonin trained in _tracking_ knowing he was there until he wanted them to. This posed a serious problem, which only grew more serious with the man's claim of being Yami's Harbinger.

"_The boy is being trained by someone so skilled_," Danzo thought as he looked over the situation again. "_He will no doubt become much more powerful. And with him wanting to become Hokage and having the backing of the shinobi council AND the Daimyo makes this very dangerous ground we are treading. Especially since that with this man training him claiming to be a servant of Yami makes the situation worse if he were to go against us. He seems to be on the same side as that demon brat and with him on the Hokage's side we'd best not let ourselves get discovered._"

However, the recent news of Jiraiya ending off to where the two were seemed promising. Hopefully that bumbling fool Jiraiya will be able to convince the demon to either leave his sensei or convince them both to come to Konoha. The latter was better because Danzo could then use his sharingan to attempt to control the demon. With the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki under his control and with the Harbinger of Yami likely to follow his lead no matter what he and Konoha would be unstoppable.

"_And even if Jiraiya fails_," Danzo thought evilly. "_I will worm my way into the group that heads out to meet them and then that brat will be easy pickings._"

Danzo chuckled darkly to himself before he walked out of the hidden compound to prepare for tomorrow's council meeting.

* * *

Hinata was training by herself in one of the more isolated training grounds of Konoha. She had promised Naruto not to reveal the technique he had given her to practice and she was determined to not let anyone find out what she was practicing. She always had her Byakugan active to keep a lookout for those coming to the training grounds; that was good training in itself. She could hardly believe the technique she had been given to her by Naruto. And he had trusted she could understand the instructions of the technique and could do it herself only made her feel happier that her new boyfriend believed in her so much.

"_Boyfriend_," she thought blushing. "_I feel a pleasant shiver going down my spine every time I say or think that about Naruto._"

Her friends had seen that she had been in an oddly good mood lately. She passed it off with a half-truth that she had gotten a new technique to practice and it was a very good one. She never told what is was and she had been training with a second new technique to show them if they asked so that she didn't have to reveal the technique Naruto had given her.

Speaking of the technique Naruto had given to her, she had made very good progress on that technique. No where near as fast as Naruto had done on the technique. Hell, he had gotten it down by this time. However, she reminded herself she wasn't practicing it as often as he did nor was she the great achiever of all things impossible that he always seemed to be either.

Despite it being slow, she was excited to learn this technique. Only a few people had learned it up to this point and she was going to be one of the maybe six people who had this technique in their inventory of techniques. And since Naruto loved using this technique she was excited to get to know it as well.

She sighed as she kept trying to complete her task. It was proving more difficult than it seemed, "_How can something so simple on paper be so difficult in real life? Come on, pop!_"

As if on cue, the object in her hand popped, spraying water all round. She gasped and then, after a pause, jumped for joy. She was now reassured that Naruto's belief in her was not in vain. In that one instant, whatever lack of confidence she had all but vanished all thanks to Naruto and the technique she'd been given, "Yes! That water balloon finally popped! Finally!"

Hinata took a deep breath of relief before she commented to herself, "I think that's enough for today. Tomorrow I'll get the rubber ball!"

Hinata calmed down slowly and thought, "_Naruto, I'm getting ever closer to mastering the technique you entrusted to me. I swear on my clan's honor that I will not let that trust be for nothing._"

* * *

"Kakashi-san."

Kakashi had been walking down the streets of Konoha with his normal orange book in his hands when had heard his name being called. When he had turned to whomever had called his name he saw Kurenai walking up to him.

"Oh, hello, Kurenai-san," he greeted casually. "What do you need."

Kurenai looked at him for a moment before saying, "Mind walking with me. I need to ask you something."

Kakashi raised his eyebrow before nodding his heading putting his book away. As they began walking Kakashi asked, "So, what is it you need?"

"It's about Hinata."

Kakashi raised an eyebrow again. He knew Hinata had begun to train the hardest of the Konoha 10, or 11 as it would be in a couple months, due to her crush on his old student. He had grown to respect the no-longer-so-shy kunoichi for her ignoring the demon inside of him and just seeing the boy who kept the biju at bay. Curious, he asked, "What about Hinata?"

"You know she has been practicing a lot, mainly by herself, after team practice is over, right?"

Kakashi nodded.

"Well, ever since last week, she's been a little. . . she's been very happy for someone so determined to get Naruto back after his kidnapping."

Kakashi almost flinched at the word 'kidnapping' since he was now convinced by the man that this wasn't true. He had come to realize that during their first encounter, the reason the man, now named as Kaosu, gave him that no-contact blow was because he had no time to sit and try to reason with him since the other members of the Retrieval Team would've arrived by that time. And that was something Kaosu probably didn't want to deal with. Still, he knew Kurenai was right. Hinata hadn't been happy nor did he think she would be happy until she was sure Naruto was safe.

"What's her excuse?" Kakashi asked.

"She says she's got a very good new technique she's been practicing, but the fact is she's as happy as Naruto is after _learning_ a technique. I don't think she'd be that happy until _after_ Naruto was safe. Something is going on and she won't tell us."

Kakashi 'hmmed' before asking, "And what do you want me to do?"

"In your years as a shinobi you've been on many missions I'd imagine with Hyuuga clan members," Kurenai began. "Much more experience than I. I was hoping you could try to see what technique she's practicing."

Kakashi thought about it for a moment, "I don't know. If she's that intent on making sure the technique stays a secret I don't think there's much I can do. Besides, who's to say she won't tell us eventually? Maybe this technique she got from someone could really help us and she wants it to be a surprise. Trying to worry less Kurenai. If she starts to get really strange, let me know."

Kurenai seemed dissatisfied but knew that was probably the best she was going to get for now and nodded. As she walked off, however, Kakashi began to think.

"_Last week. . . that was when Kaosu appeared to us in the Hokage's Office. Is it possible that he visited her as well? Or is someone else involved?_" Kakashi paused a moment before a thought struck him. "_Someone like Naruto. . ._"

The more Kakashi thought about it, the more it made sense. Obviously Naruto had trained under Kaosu for three months and his new sensei's skills at hiding in the shadows were just incredible. Added to the mix Naruto's unimaginable ability to make the impossible possible and there's a good chance he mastered some of Kaosu's stealth abilities. While Kaosu was here Naruto could have very well had come with him. He remembered Kaosu's words about Naruto wanting to come back but knowing now wasn't the time. It's quite possible he eavesdropped on them to see how they were doing.

"_And it also probably means_," Kakashi thought. "_That if he overheard them talk about her he'd have learned of Hinata's feelings for him._"

It was true, with Hinata's new found resolve due to her feelings for the blonde the Konoha 10 had begun to talk about her alot. Mainly in an respecting and dare he say admiring way. If Naruto heard that he had been oblivious to such things for so long it was obvious, despite knowing he probably shouldn't, would have gone to see her. If that were the case, they probably had become good friends very fast with that. It would easily explain Hinata's sudden change in character.

"_But that still leaves the issue of the technique she was given,_" Kakashi thought. "_If my theory is correct, it probably means the technique was given to her by Naruto. But what technique could it be_."

Kakashi, still in deep thought, decided, "_I need to discuss this with the Hokage. She'll want to know about this. . ._"

With that, the Copy Nin shunshinned away.

* * *

Tsunade sat in her office dealing with what she called the Hokage Infinity Paperwork Curse. It never seemed to fricking end! She took another swig of her sake before she heard a knock at the door. Eager for a break from her paperwork, she called out, "Enter."

With that, the door opened as Shizune let Kakashi into the office. Tsunade raised an eyebrow, "What do you need, Hatake?"

"Earlier, Kurenai came up to me and asked me to watch one of her teammates due to a major change of character. I told her if it worsened I'd investigate but it was something she mentioned during the conversation that brought my attention. I thought it necessary to come talk to you."

"Oh?" Tsunade asked curiously. "And who is this student of hers?"

"One Hyuuga Hinata, Hokage-sama."

Tsunade's eyes widened in surprise. She knew Hinata had been in love with Naruto and had been the most determined out of all the Konoha 10 to train to fight Naruto's 'kidnapper', "And what is wrong with her."

"Kurenai-san mentioned that she had been unusually happy. As happy as Naruto would've been after mastering a new technique or getting a free stash of ramen. A happiness she thought she'd never see from Hinata unless Naruto had been brought back safely."

"And what did Hinata tell her?"

"That she had a new technique that she was excited to learn."

Tsunade cocked an eyebrow. "Hinata isn't a person I'd consider getting that excited over a technique."

"Me neither."

"So what got your interest in this whole thing?"

"The fact that apparently this all started last week."

At first it didn't register in the Hokage's mind. Then she thought about it. Last week they had received a visit from the man who was Yami's harbinger.

The same man who took Naruto.

"Your suggesting Kaosu visited her as well?" Tsunade asked curiously.

"I thought that at first."

"At first?"

"Until I thought this up. Naruto has obviously been training for the past three months with Kaosu, right? The man is a espionage genius in his own league. He snuck in and out of a shinobi village and snuck into and stayed hidden in the _Hokage's_ Office for our entire meeting while three tracking experts were present in there. Naruto is amazing for being able to pull of the seemingly impossible. We considered Kaosu's ability of stealth impossible. Do you not think Naruto would learn some of this stealth as well?"

Tsunade stared at Kakashi in disbelief, "Are you trying to say that Naruto was _here_?!"

"Kaosu said that Naruto wanted to visit but knew now was not the time. However, that does not mean he didn't drop by to hear how we were doing. With how much the Konoha 10 has been talking about Hinata's feelings for him, I have no doubt he would have heard about this and sought to fix the mistakes he had made."

Tsunade leaned back, "_He's making some very good arguments here. Was Naruto here is the village when Kaosu was present. I do recall Konohamaru and his team mentioning that the gate guards has seen a suspicious young man with long black hair and a younger boy with a bandanna and shades. Could that have been them?_"

"There's more," Kakashi continued getting Tsunade's attention. "I believe the technique she is learning might have been from Naruto if my theory is correct. It's probably why she hasn't revealed what it is yet."

Tsunade nodded understanding, "Because Naruto asked her not to."

There was a silence before Tsunade spoke, "Well, whatever it is, we won't need to worry about it."

Kakashi's eyes widened and Tsunade laughed, "What? Did you expect me to order you to spy on her to figure out what the technique was or if it really was Naruto who visited her? If it is true, and it was Naruto, I see no reason having to worry about it. She'll reveal when she's able to. Two years from now all will be revealed Hatake Kakashi. I trust you can wait if I can."

Kakashi hesitated for a brief moment before nodding, "Hai, Hokage-sama."

Tsunade returned the nod, "If that is all, you may leave."

* * *

"Hey, otou-san."

"Yes, Naruto?" Minato asked, looking at his son.

"How did you and okaa-san meet?"

Minato and Kushina looked at each other. The recently reunited family were sitting in a small living room in the recently rebuilt Uzukage Tower with Kaosu and the other paths. The group had decided to bring Uzushiogakure back to its former glory and though they were prepared to start building the old fashioned way, Hashirama provided the solution with his Wood Release and, with his wife's and Kushina's guidance, were able to resurrect Uzushiogakure back to the way it was before it was attack. It was truly a stunning sight to behold. The city was very beautiful now that it had been raised from its ruined ashes like a phoenix.

"Well," Minato said thinking back at old memories. "We met at the Konoha Shinobi Academy. She disliked me at first but after I saved her after she was kidnapped by Kumo shinobi she fell for me. I eventually returned her feelings and we were married."

"It was mainly due to him proving to me he wasn't a wimp and him liking the one thing I hated about myself," Kushina said adding her own two cents.

"And what was that, okaa-san?"

"My red hair."

"Why did you hate you hair? I think it looks pretty cool."

"Thank you, you're the second person to compliment it. The first was your father. Everyone else made fun of me for it."

"Isn't love grand?" Mito commented as she lovingly held onto her husband. Then she got a mischievous smirk that made Naruto sweat a bit, "Isn't that right, Naruto?"

"Oh man, not this again!" Naruto yelled, his face turning red with embarrassment. "It's not fair! It's seven against one here!"

"**Don't you mean eight against one,** **kit?**" came Kurama's snickering voice from Naruto's mindscape.

"_Shut it, furball!_" Naruto screamed mentally. Naruto then heard snickering and turned to see Kaosu holding back his laughing, "What's so funny, Yukai-han-sensei?"

"Nothing, lover boy," Kaosu grinned. "It's just that I think seven. . .no, eight on one is completely fair."

"So you think you can stand against myself, Kurama, and my paths," Naruto grinned. Kaosu shrugged, "Maybe. Maybe not. All I know is that all is fair in love and war."

"Ain't that the truth," Kushina giggled and passed an mischievous glance at Minato, who sweated a bit.

"Why are you all teasing me about this?!" Naruto asked frantically waving his arms.

"Because you make it so easy, lover boy," Kaosu smirked.

"Yeah, I don't know how it's easy for, Yukai-han-sensei. You've obviously never loved someone."

Silence flooded the room as Kaosu's smirk almost instantly vanished to a frown. He tilted his head down so that strands of his hair covered his eyes.

"What did you just say?" Kaosu asked in a forced whisper. The Paths instantly saw the area around him slowly grow darker but Naruto took no heed of these warning signs."

"I said you obvious have never loved someon-" CRUNCH!

Naruto flew back into a wall at lightning speed after a massive blow practically shattered his skull. Naruto held his face in pain. He looked up enraged, "What the hell was that for you bas-"

Naruto stopped dead. In front of him was Kaosu, however, the background behind him was obviously much darker than before. A black, fiendish aura danced around his body and his midnight blue eyes were slowly turning crimson with rage. Even the six paths in the room couldn't help but be a little afraid of the aura coming off of him.

"_He certainly lives up to his title. The sheer power and intimidation radiating off of him is insane_," Hiruzen thought. He, along with the other paths were worried about Naruto. While they knew Naruto had gone to far, they weren't expecting this reaction from the usually calm, happy-go-lucky guy he usually was. They prepared themselves to step in if necessary.

He bent down to Naruto's level and used his hand to force Naruto against the dent in the wall.

"Listen here, kid, and listen well," Kaosu said in a dark voice that threatened Naruto with extreme pain if he dared to speak. "Don't you _EVER_ say that to me again! Do. . . I make. . . msyelf. . . _clear_?"

Naruto, shaken by his old sensei's sudden actions, could only nod, "Hai, Mahotsukai-sensei."

With that, he let Naruto go and left the building leaving his comrades wondering why that one phrase pissed him off so badly. Naruto got up. He looked sad. He had upset one of his friends and now he was going to fix it. Naruto began to walk towards the exit.

"Naruto-san, where are you going?" Tobirama asked though he already knew the answer.

"To find him. I need to apologize."

With that, Naruto left the room. His paths followed.

* * *

Naruto and his paths found Kaosu on the roof of one of the western most buildings in the village. He was holding a picture in his hand. Upon closer inspection Naruto noticed that there were two people in it. One was Kaosu himself though not dressed in his normal black garbs but in a more regal black and gold haori and armor. The woman seemed a little younger than he was. She had bright blue eyes which also seemed to have a touch of gray in them. Her hair was also an odd color. It was snow white. Her hair was shorter, only about shoulder length, and she wore a nice gray and blue kimono. They were both smiling in this picture. Naruto also noticed that Kaosu's hand was on her far shoulder and they were very close together.

Naruto sadly looked at his sensei's state. It was easy to tell the young man was trying to hold back his tears but was only moments away from breaking. Naruto paused a moment before speaking, "Who was she?"

There was a very long pause before Kaosu sighed, "Her name was Mahotsukai-Shinko Yasana. She was my wife."

Naruto and his paths tensed. Naruto felt really bad now for what he said. But he also heard him say _was _as well. Naruto swallowed, "What happened to her?"

There was another long paused before Kaosu answered through sniffs. The phrase he spoke hit a cord in all of them.

"I failed."

With that, Kaosu broke in sobs. Naruto had never seen him like this. Minato and Kushina looked at each other. Having lost the other before because of the Kyuubi attack they knew what it was like to lose their spouse as did Mito when Hashirama died. They knew that that experience was outright spirit-breaking and filled with sorrow. They wouldn't wish such sorrow upon even their worst enemy.

Slowly, Naruto walked over to him and put a hand on his ex-sensei's shoulder in a comforting manner. The paths soon joined in.

* * *

**And that's a wrap. I literally let out a tear as I wrote the last part. I have a good imagination and I also tend to feel the emotion I'm writing. I do believe those are good traits as a writer if I'm no mistaken. Anyway, as for words: Shinko = Faith and Yasana comes from Yasashi, which means kindness. In the last part, I added quite a bit of symbolism in the last part. If a review can point out a symbol, I will mention them in a separate portion of 'Response to Reviews' next chapter. Whether you guess it or not I will still tell you the symbolism in it. Thank you for reading and please review!**

**~Teddypro**

**Response to Reviews**

**{TAKCH1} - **Interesting story I must say and better than wackos current fic IMO. I do wonder what naruto gave Hinata though.**  
{Shadowraven15} - **nice story...much better than wacko's...the only question i will ask is when will you update..is weekly or where will you want to write?

**_Answer_: **Okay, I'm breaking the 4-only rule because the first part is exactly the same and I just want to say "SORRY, WACKO! I FEEL SO BAD!" Anyway, now to the other part. TAKCH1, well, now you have a pretty good idea. Shadowraven, I'm trying to keep updates daily but that will NOT last for too much longer I'm afraid.

**{Jubi 67} - **Make sasuke and sakura death very torturous like have sakura look in the mirror and have it break due to her "uglieness" or have sasuke's "penis" explode due to it's small size shrinking more

**_Answer_: **. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dear God and I thought I was sadistic.

**{Peter Kim}** - There is no redemption for Sasuke Uchiha ever since such thing will end up having this fic losing alot of readers. Will Naruto tell anyone that Uzushiogakure is back and have all the remaning Naruto's clan return to Uzushiogakure?

_**Answer**_**: **Okay. 1) That first sentence sounds like a threat to me. 2) I still read fanfiction even if they have a particular element that I don't really like. For example, _Naruto: Nine and Seven_, I don't like the whole idea of Hinata becoming this evil, obssessive girl for Naruto after she finds out he's with Fu, but I still read it. So, honestly, you should like a story for just that, the story, and really focus too much on one element and let it ruin it all for you. You can hate the idea, that's fine; just don't tell me I'm going to lose viewer if I do decide to go that route and that is if I decide. Because that makes it sound like that if I do decide to eventually redeem Sasuke, and it just might due to this being a PEACE challenge, that you are going to flood me with hate mail and have your buddies do it too. You can have your opinion; I can perfectly respect that; just don't shove your opinion down my throat or I might just go that route just to spite you. Anyway, rant done. Next part of review's answer = undecided.

**_{senjuuchiha} - _**Wow aw man i love this book this by far the best rinnegan naruto ever keep it up bro you doin a great job

**_Answer: _**. . . Okay, I won't be a Grammar Nazi this time. I'll be here too long. First let me just say that I am flattered but I'd prefer if you said it was the best Rinnegan Naruto fic _you_ had ever read not just ever. That implies that it is fact and it isn't. It's just your opinion. Just food for thought. And thank you.


	5. Confrontation! Kaosu vs Jiraiya

**Disclaimer - I do not own Naruto.**

**Chapter 5 - Confrontation: Kaosu vs. Jiraiya**

* * *

_**A few days later. .** ._

"Finally, I made it," Jiraiya said as he approached Uzushiogakure. It was still hidden through some fog that covered the area and he was still on alert for any of the seals and traps in the area. "_Don't worry, Naruto. When I get there, this so-called 'Harbinger of Yami' is going to get a rasengan straight through the skull. I don't believe this man's words! Not even for a second!_"

Finally, Uzushiogakure came into view and Jiraiya stifled a gasp. Before him was the ruins of Uzushiogakure. . . minus the ruins part, however. It was fully restored. It was as if the city had never fallen in the first place. Jiraiya couldn't help but stare wide-eyed, "This is impossible. . ."

"Not at all, Sennin," Jiraiya spun around to see a man cloaked in standing there behind him. Jiraiya's eyes narrowed, "So you're the one who kidnapped Naruto?"

The man shook his head and groaned, "Really? Didn't I just call it 'necessary intervention'?"

If Jiraiya could have sworn his saw the man blink hunder his hood, "Wait, aren't you- oh, I don't know- 2 years early?"

Jiraiya growled, "You'd think I'd take your word for it? That I'd just go along with you schemes because you made yourself _seem_ honest? No, I don't think so."

Jiraiya readied a kunai that caused Kaosu to smirk under his cloak, "You want to fight me, Ero-sennin?"

Jiraiya eyes widened at that, "How do you know that name?"

"I trained Mr. Lover Boy," Kaosu said matter-of-factually. "He told me his little nickname for you. I works very well."

"_Lover Boy_?" Jiraiya thought but it was broken when the man continued, "Well, if you want to fight I won't stop you."

Just then, Kaosu held out his hand and a trail of shadowy air slowly formed on his hand. It streamed out to form a scythe-like shape. Kaosu clenched down and the shadows immediately vanished and a large black-handled scythe was left in it's place. Add to the cloak and hood, Jiraiya could've sworn he was fighting a reaper from the western myths that he had heard in his travels, "Just know, Jiraiya no Gama Sennin, what you are getting into."

The self-proclaimed hermit could feel the devilish gleam coming from under the man's hood and he mentally prepared himself for the fight of his life.

* * *

Naruto was taking a break from his training with his Paths. He had finished seal training with his mother not too long ago and was getting ready for chakra control training with Tobirama. This training session was always the toughest for Naruto due to the ungodly massive chakra cpacity due to his lineage, the Kyuubi, and now the fact that the Rikudo's spirit within him is now awakened. But, if anyone could teach him it'd be Tobirama. The man's chakra control was perfect after all.

Currently, Naruto was sitting inside the Uzukage's Tower relaxing. Tobirama, Hashirama, and Hiruzen were there with him. Mito and Kushina were in the Uzukage's Office rewriting documents which were destroyed in the genocide of the Uzumaki years before. Minato himself was heading to the Wave to gather more supplies for his wife and her relative, who needed more ink and paper. That still left one person unaccounted for, however.

"Where's Yukai-han-sensei?" Naruto asked his paths. They looked at each other and shrugged.

"I don't know, Naruto-san," Hashirama confessed.

"I remember hearing him say something about watching the gate and then he left," Hiruzen pointed out.

There was a pause before Hashirama spoke, "You don't think-"

BOOM!

The sound of an explosion filled the air causing the new Sennin and his paths to jump up in surprise. Within an instant, Mito and Kushina charged downstairs and Minato appeared thanks to a Hiraishin he had place in the room.

"What they hell just happened?!" Minato shouted alert along with Kushina and Mito.

"We don't know but we have a feeling it has to do with Kaosu being at the front gate," Tobirama explained.

"Wait, you mean someone is here?!" Kushina asked. "Didn't Kaosu say 'not for two years'?"

"Apparently, it was ignored," Naruto huffed. He then walked to the door, "Come on, let's go."

* * *

Jiraiya was panting. This guy was definitely no slouch. The guy was matching up against him easily. The worst part was that his opponent didn't really seem all that winded. If he was, he was hiding it very well.

"I must admit, you're putting up a good fight, old man."

Jiraiya scoffed, "I'm not that old. I must admit you skill with that scythe of yours is incredible."

It was no joke either. Moments ago, Jiraiya had tried to use the Rasengan against him, but Kaosu had spun his scythe blade straight into the spiraling ball. This caused it to detonate before Jiraiya was ready and caused him to fly back. Kaosu, who was at a good distance due to the reach of the scythe, managed to brace himself for the explosion and managed to keep himself firmly in place. Despite Jiraiya thinking this man was lying about being Yami's Harbinger, there was no doubt this man was very good. He had effectively used the Gama Sennin's own attack against him, and the Rasengan of all attacks. That was impressive.

Jiraiya smirked, "But it means nothing. I am one of the three sennin and I haven't even entered Sage Mode yet. You are just somebody who claims to be Yami's Harbinger."

* * *

It was then that Naruto and his six paths arrived on top of the village gate. They had just managed to hear Jiraiya's claim. Naruto's clenched his fist, "Ero-Sennin? What's he doing here?"

"Obviously, he didn't want to wait," Hashirama answered.

"Him calling out Kaosu-san like that," Mito began to point out. "He's going to get himself seriously injured."

"Yeah, poor Ero-Sensei," Minato sighed.

* * *

"Claims?" Kaosu asked releasing some killer intent upon the poor pervert. "I don't _claim_ anything."

Jiraiya then became painfully aware of the surrounding area. It was as if something large moved in front of the sun over the village. The entire area was growing ever darker and a fiendish black aura began to swarm around Kaosu himself.

"But if you're so intent to find out what I say is true," Kaosu continued with a devilish smirk painted on his face. "Then get ready to experience it _first hand_!"

Jiraiya suddenly felt a wave of pressure hit him. He felt like he was wearing a very heavy set of training weights but Jiraiya knew he couldn't falter. Not now.

He made his decision on what to do.

"**Kuchiyose no Jutsu!**" Jiraiya called out as he slammed his palm into the ground summoning the two elderly toads Shima and Fukasaku beside him.

"Jiraiya!" Fukasaku cried. "What's going on here?! Why were we summoned?!"

"Sorry, Pa," Jiraiya replied. "I need both of you right now. As much as it's a lady repellent, I need Sage Mode against this guy."

The two toads looked at the dark and powerful man across from Jiraiya. Both their eyes narrowed, "Jiraiya. . . who is that?"

"That man is named Mahotsukai Kaosu. He claims to be the Harbinger of Yami."

The toads blinked and scanned the man again. They swallowed.

"Jiraiya. . ." Shima began. "He isn't claiming it. He's telling the truth."

"What?!"

"She's right," the male Great Sage Toad replied. "I can sense his energy. Not quite chakra but very similar not to mention with a divine attribute. A dark divine attribute, but divine no less."

Jiraiya swallowed hard before he and the two toads stared down the dark man before them. Fukasaku let out a breath, "We'll help you go into Sage Mode, but don't expect this to end well, Jiraiya."

Jiraiya nodded and did a couple of hand signs, "**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!**"

Three shadow clones appeared and Jiraiya ordered, "Keep him at bay!"

The three shadow clones charged at the Harbinger who mearly evaded them. Kaosu didn't try to stop Jiraiya. He really wanted to fight him in his Sage Mode.

As the shadow clones 'distracted' Yami's harbinger, the two toads hopped onto the man's shoulders and shouted, "**Senpō: Ryosei no Jutsu!**"

With that they fused to Jiraiya's shoulders and Jiraiya entered Sage Mode. His nose got bigger, warts covered his body, and his white hair grew longer. Toad eyes also replaced his own as well.

"Alright," Jiraiya shouted. "Let's go!"

* * *

Naruto raised his eyebrow, "Uh, otou-san. . . what just happened to Ero-Sennin?"

"He just entered Sage Mode," Minato answered.

"Sage Mode?"

"Yes. Gathering natural energy from the surrounding area allows him to transform into Sage Mode. However, he was never able to do it completely. So, he has to summon those two elderly sage toads to fuse with him and stabilize his nature chakra."

"So, in other words, his Sage Mode is imperfect."

"Right."

Naruto hmmed and then went back to watching the fight.

* * *

"YYYYAAAHHHH!" Jiraiya shouted as he charged at Kaosu, attempting to give him a mighty display of his Taijutsu abilities. Kaosu dodged two punches before swing his scythe. Jiraiya managed to move but the swing did cut open a gash in his shirt.

"_Crap! That was close!_" Jiraiya thought. "_Okay, close-range fighting is not a good idea with a guy skillfully wielding a scythe._"

Kaosu smirked, "What's wrong, Sennin? To close for comfort?"

Jiraiya glared back, "Just making a plan of attack."

"Of course you are."

"Oh yeah?" Jiraiya taunted preparing an attack. "Take this! **Senpō: Goemon!**"

The Sennin and two toads all opened their mouths. Jiraiya fired a stream of oil out of his mouth, Fukasaku fired out a stream of wind, and Shima fired out a steam of fire. The huge inferno flooded towards Kaosu. The Harbinger seemed unimpressed. Naruto and his paths grew wide-eyed as the blazing inferno washed toward him like a tsunami. Kaosu sighed and held out his hand. "**Kage Majutsu: Yami no Bakuha.**"

A blast of darkness shot from Kaosu's hand in a straight line towards the Sennin. Waves of shadowy air rippled off the blast of darkness as it traveled. These waves dispersed the flames of the inferno and caused it to fade away. The blast itself struck the Sennin him knocking him far back before the attack vanished as it ended. The Sennin was flying through the air before catching himself quite a ways back. The attack didn't leave any mark or anything but the Sennin could've sworn it was almost like getting hit with one of Tsunade's light punches, except with a fist about three times bigger.

"_That was no D-Rank Justu either_," Jiraiya thought. "_I've never even heard of Majutsu before but it looks like it doesn't need hand signs. This could be a problem._"

Jiraiya growled, "_Get it doesn't matter, short-ranged or long-ranged._"

He again went through the hand signs, "**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!**"

Two shadow clones of Jiraiya formed next to him in a puff of smoke and the two charged at him. Kaosu shook head. He quickly sidestepped one clone and expelled him with a swing of his scythe. He quickly turned around and gathered energy into his free hand.

"**Kage Majutsu: Kokuso!**"

Kaosu swung his energy-filled hand in an upwards arc causing a spike made of black energy to shoot up from the ground and impale the other clone causing him to dispel as well. Kaosu grinned and turned to face his opponent smirking with a face that screamed '_Is that all you've got?_'. His reward for the smug act was for a rasengan to be delivered right into his skull forcing him into the ground. It detonated.

BOOM!

* * *

BOOM!

"Kao-" Naruto began to shout but was stopped by his father. His father gave him this look, "Wait. Let's watch and see if he can pull through."

Naruto hesitated for a moment before nodding to his Deva Path.

* * *

Jiraiya had jumped up and was catching his breath. He finally had a break and he, at the very least, had done some serious damage to his opponent. He was about to straight his back to observe the damage when he heard a voice, "Nice shot."

Jiraiya's as well as the toad's eyes widened as he looked up. Kaosu was slowly getting out of the crater he had created with his rasengan. The man's cloak had been heavily damaged and he could now see the man's face, oddly-colored eyes and all. Kaosu was smirking, "I have to admit that one hurt a lot."

Kaosu stood up and tossed away his damaged cloak. He revealed his long black hair and a torn sleeveless, and black gi. A dark gray sash was tied around his waste. The man slammed his scythe into the ground before cracking his knuckles, "I think now I should get a bit more serious and show you some more advanced Kage Majustu. Don't you agree, Gama Sennin?"

Kaosu's taunt caused Jiraiya to tense, especially when Kaosu picked up his scythe and started spinning it.

"**Kage Majustu: Yami no Shio!**" Kaosu stopped spinning his scythe and slammed the top of it into the ground. A wave of a black-smoke like substance washed out and coated the surrounding area much like a water falling into a basin. Kaosu leaned back up an smirked. . . and then fell straight into the blackness like if he was on top of a lake and just stop his chakra from allowing him to water-walk. Jiraiya stifled another gasp and began to look around, wondering where he was.

Just then, Jiraiya felt his subconscious screaming at him to move. Jiraiya jumped away just as Kaosu erupted from the black smoke beneath him swinging his scythe in the process. Kaosu landed from his jumped and started to swing continuously at the Sennin before the hermit sidestepped around readied a rasengan. When he was about to use the attack Kaosu vanished into the blackened air at their ankles yet again. Jiraiya could only dispel the jutsu and wait.

* * *

Hiruzen couldn't help but grin, "That is certainly an very useful technique."

Minato chuckled, "Yeah, it's like having thousands of Hiraishin seals on the floor of a battlefield only they can't be erased and you can hide as well."

"Good analogy, dear," Kushina grinned as she continued to watch her husband's sensei struggle against the Harbinger of Yami.

"Why thank you."

* * *

Jiraiya instinctual moved again as Kaosu shot from ground beside him. This time, however, Kaosu didn't follow him. He just smirked, "Hmm, maybe I should make this a bit more interesting. What do you think, Gama Senning?"

"What are you going to do?" Jiraiya taunted. "Fart out smoke?"

Kaosu chuckled a bit at Jiraiya's taunt before snapping his fingers. Instantly, four man-sized cyclones of shadowy air erupted in from seemingly random place in the black-covered battleground and began to slowly move around the area. Kaosu smugly grinned at Jiraiya one last time before stepping into one of the them and vanished. Jiraiya immediately went on alert, "_Great. It isn't bad enough that he could vanish into the floor but now I have to pay attention to these moving pillars now? This is getting better by the minute!_"

Jiraiya quickly dodged another swing as Kaosu appeared and disappeared.

"_Dammit this is getting old!_" Jiraiya then challeneged, "Alright, Mr. Harbinger! Come out here and we'll finish this right now!"

The cyclones instantly vanished causing Jiraiya to blink in surprise. Unbeknownst to him, so did his godson and the paths observing from nearby.

"So be it."

Jiraiya spun around. Kaosu was standing a ways away from him. His scythe was planted firmly on the ground. Jiraiya got into a fighting stance and Kaosu grinned. He raised up his free arm to it pointed straight into the air.

"**Kage Majustu: Kage no Hiso.**" Kaosu said as he point his arm at the Sennin. As he did so, dozens of black, spearheaded chains erupted from behind him and arced towards the poor hermit. Jiraiya, Naruto, and the paths's eyes widened in horror and a number of the pierced through the Sennin's body. To their surprise, however, the chains didn't leave a wound or draw blood or anything. However, Jiraiya suddenly felt the chains retract towards their sender and the spearheads caused the unwilling hermit to fly right towards Kaosu. Jiraiya's face made contact with Kaosu's open palm with such force that the shadowy air around Kaosu's feet dispersed. Kaosu grinned evilly.

"Goooooood Night!" Kaosu shouted as he slammed the poor man's head into the ground with such force that even Naruto and his paths could feel the shock wave caused by the impact.

* * *

The Rikudo Sennin Reborn and his paths all winced.

"Ouch," Naruto said in sympathy of his once-sensei.

"That has got to hurt," Minato agreed.

* * *

When the dust settled and the shadowy air finally vanished they all saw an unconscious Jiraiya. The toads were gone and his Sage Mode was deactivated. Kaosu let out a sigh, "It was fun, old man, but sadly it's over now."

With that, Naruto and his paths appeared besides him. Naruto raised an eyebrow, "I trust you didn't do anything too damaging?"

Kaosu grinned, "Might've killed a few brain cells with that last one but other than that I think he's fine."

His companions sweat-dropped and looked at him. Kaosu looked at Naruto, "So, should I send him back to the Hokage?"

Naruto shook his head, "No, I think he does deserve to know what's going on."

Kaosu blinked, "And why is that exactly?"

Naruto grinned, "Jiraiya's in charge of a massive spy network, Yukai-han-sensei. I recall you know that never well, right?"

Kaosu's responses was a stifled groan and him rolling his eyes in annoyance.

"If he knows and trusts us we can get some information from him just as Konoha does."

Those present widened their eyes. That was a very good point. He could provide them all with valuable information to help them over the next couple of years. Kaosu nodded, "I'll take him inside."

* * *

Jiraiya groaned as he got up. He had a massive headache. What the hell happened?

"_Oh, yeah_," Jiraiya thought solemnly. "_I got my ass handed to me by that guy who took Naruto._"

Jiraiya clenched his fists in rage, "Dammit!"

He slammed his fist beside him but was surprised to find he hit something soft. Jiraiya looked down at what he hit; it was a blanket. He quickly realized he was in a bed. He looked around to find himself in a room he didn't recognize. Jiraiya groaned, "_Well, isn't this lovely._"

"Well, sensei," came a voice from in front of him. Jiraiya looked up and gaped at what he saw. There was Minato, standing there, alive, right before his eyes. But he noticed something strikingly different about him. One was that he had metal piercings on his face. The other was that he had purple eyes with six circles rippling out of a dot in the center.

"_The Rinnegan_," Jiraiya realized with a gasp. Minato smirked, "Glad to see you awake."

With that, Jiraiya fainted. Minato blinked then shook his head, "Or glad to see you _were_ awake."

_**A few moments later. .** ._

Jiraiya groaned and sat up again, "What kind of fucked up dream was that. I thought I saw my student alive and with the Rinnegan."

"You did."

Jiraiya eyes widened and he looked up in shock, "Minato. . . b-but how?"

"Relax and I'll explain."

Jiraiya nodded and took a deep breath. Minato returned the nod, "To answer your question I am alive because I have been brought back to be one of the six paths of a bearer of the Rinnegan."

Jiraiya blinked, "Care to elaborate?"

Minato nodded, "A bearer of the Rinnegan has six paths that can be utilized by him or her in addition to having control over the basic five elements. These paths are the Deva Path, the Asura Path, the Animal Path, the Human Path, the Preta Path, and the Naraka Path. Each has their own special ability. With me so far?"

Jiraiya nodded and Minato continued.

"A Rinnegan user can use metal piercings like the ones that I have in me right now to control six bodies of his or her's choosing and each body can control one of these paths. By channeling chakra into these piercings and into these bodies, he or she can control them."

"So if they are controlled bodies how are you. . . well, you?"

"My guess is Kaosu had something to do with it. He's the Harbinger of Yami I assume he did something. What he did I'm not sure."

Jiraiya nodded, "So, which path are you?"

Minato smiled, "I am the Deva Path. I have the ability to manipulate gravity. And this is in addition to my old abilities."

Jiraiya's eyes widened in surprise. Minato chuckled at his sensei's face. "Oh, you haven't heard anything. Just wait until you hear who the other paths are and their own abilites are."

Jiraiya looked at his student, "Who are they?"

Minato's mischievous smirk caused Jiraiya to sweat a bit.

"First, the Animal Path is my wife, Uzumaki Kushina. She has the ability to summon an animal at will without needing a contract."

Jiraiya's eyes widened but he knew Minato was just getting started.

"Next is the Asura Path, who is Uzumaki Mito, wife of the Shodai. She has the ability to summon and utilize any weapon of her choosing. After that we have Senju Hashirama, the Shodai himself, as the Preta Path. He had the ability to absorb any and all chakra-based attacks. The Nidaime, Senju Tobirama is the Human Path. He has the ability to read minds and rip people's souls from their bodies."

Jiraiya was looking at Minato's face in pure and utter shock. Five shinobi, each easily S-ranked to SS-ranked, were now paths for a Rinnegan user; the only one of which he had ever seen was Nagato. But Jiraiya couldn't see how Nagato would've gotten these bodies for his paths. Then again it could've been Kaosu. Jiraiya then realized Minato had missed something, "What about the Naraka Path?"

Minato smiled, "The Naraka Path is very interesting. That path has the ability to summon the King of Hell."

"The. . . King of Hell?"

"Yes and it by far has one of the most useful abilities out of all of us. The King of Hell gives the user the abilities of Restoration and Interrogation. It has the ability to interrogate people and if they lie they get their souls devoured by the King and the ability to raised any of the paths back up should they fall."

Jiraiya gaped. Minato was indeed right. Such abilities did make this path incredibly important to them.

"Who is the Naraka Path?"

Minato smirked yet again, "Your sensei, Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Sandaime Hokage."

Jiraiya leaned back in shock. His sensei was back and was one of the paths of this Rinnegan user, one who he thought was Nagato, "So where's Nagato?"

Minato blinked, "Who?"

"Wait, Nagato isn't the Rinnegan user?"

"Who's Nagato, sensei?"

"He was a Rinnegan user I found and trained during the Second Shinobi War. He was an orphan in Amegakure."

Minato looked at his sensei in surprise and he could feel Naruto and the other paths surprise as well.

"But if Nagato isn't the Rinnegan user who summoned you, then who is?"

Minato laughed, "He's my son, Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto."

Jiraiya was instantly on his feet, "NARUTO?! HOW?!"

Minato bopped his sensei on the head, "Calm down, sensei. Screaming won't get your question answered."

Jiraiya settled down and Minato continued, "But seriously, how did Naruto get the Rinnegan?"

"Simple," Minato answered as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "He is the reincarnation of the Rikudo Sennin. He and the Founder of Ninjutsu are one and the same person."

Jiraiya was gaping. He could have sworn Nagato was the Sage's reincarnation. But now in truth it was Naruto? But, what did that make Nagato? "I. . . I think I need to sit down."

Minato nodded as Jiraiya took a seat on the bed.

"Sensei," Minato began, getting the Gama Sennin's attention. "I cannot let you see Naruto and the other paths just yet. And before you argue, let me explain. It was obvious that you weren't going to listen to Kaosu so one of the paths or Naruto had to talk to you. Naruto isn't supposed to reveal himself as the Rikudo Sennin's reincarnation just yet so we paths talked about it and decided I'd be the one to talk with you."

"I see," Jiraiya said sadly but with understanding.

"Don't worry, sensei, you'll see us all again in two years time. But before then, we need to ask you a favor."

Jiraiya blinked and looked at his student, "What is it, Minato?"

"We need you to inform us of the outside world with your spy network. We'd like to know what's going on to make sure we're up-to-date when two years passes. We are going to be very isolated here so information won't really get to us. You think you can do that."

"Yes, Minato, I understand," Jiraiya nodded. He got up and gathered his gear, but before he left he turned to Minato, "Goodbye, Minato. Could you please tell Naruto. . . that I'm sorry for not being there for him?"

Minato nodded, "Of course, sensei."

"And, could you tell Kaosu I'm sorry for doubting him?"

"No need," Jiraiya turned to see Kaosu, re-cloaked and all, leaning against a wall nearby. "I'm used to people not believing me at first. I can't exactly blame them though. You did good out there though. Best fight I've had in awhile."

Jiraiya chuckled, "Anytime I guess. See ya!"

With that, the Gama Sennin jumped out of the Village Hidden of the Whirlpool. He wouldn't return again for two years. . .

* * *

**And that's it for this chapter. Sorry, it's a bit smaller than my norm but that fight scene was killer. Would you believe me if I said I really only got into Naruto a few months ago? Never have seen the anime and have only read in the manga from where Naruto goes Biju mode and onward. Yeah, that made writing this very difficult. Anyway, I might as well go over Kaosu's techniques:**

******Kage Majutsu: Yami no Bakuha (Shadow Magic: Blast of Darkness) - Okay, let me get this straight. Yes, it means magic but there's people who can walk on water and cast powerful illusions and summon large animals and a guy who's immortal due to sacrificing to a god. If you think about it, a lot of that sounds like something from Final Fantasy. I think you all will live. Besides, it's not like I was saying magic. It's just another jutsu are to add to the whole mix. Anyway, speaking of Final Fantasy, I got the idea for the design of this technique from the ability Tsunami from Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings.**

**********Kage Majutsu: Kokuso (Shadow Magic: Black Spear) - A simple black spike that shots up fast from the ground. Very simple.**

**************Kage Majustu: Yami no Shio (Shadow Magic: Tide of Darkness) - Simply covers that floor with shadowy air that the user to control to hide himself or blind people. Fun fact: Kaosu isn't actually vanishing in that stuff. He's actually just using shadow stalk and using the shadowy air to hide his movements.**

******************Kage Majustu: Kage no Hiso (Shadow Magic: Chains of Shadow) - To put it simply it a combination of the Chains of Hell used by Dual Bladers in MapleStory and Medusa's Vector Arrows from Soul Eater.**

******************Well, not that that's done. Hoped you all enjoyed the first fight and see you all next time. Oh, and don't forget to review!**

******************~Teddypro**

******************Response to Reviews**

******************{Gold Testament} - When he said "I failed" that's got to mean that something happened to his wife and he could neither save nor protect her, so because of that he blames himself.**

******************Answer: Uh. . . well, that was kinda an obvious one. I was sorta looking for something a tad more hidden, but it was good go.**

******************{Oniix} - **Dude seriously your having hinata learn the rasengan wtf man thats narutos signature move i mean shit thats like giving sakura the chidori its bullshit man i hate it when people give her the rasengan

******************_Answer_: **So what your saying is that Jiraiya shouldn't be using the Rasengan or Konohamaru. Or maybe nobody should use the shadow clones because Naruto used them all the time. Or that maybe that just because you reviewed I should abide by your wishes and change _my_ fanfiction that I took time out of _my_ day to write just because _you_ would be mad otherwise. Honestly dude, just shut up. You are trying to make yourself seem more awesome because you're talking down to someone but in reality you are making yourself look like a complete and utter moron. All I see right now is a playground bully. A ten year old playground bully. Because honestly, that's your doing. If you don't like the idea you don't have to read this fanfiction. Just don't fill my review slots with flaming reviews because you don't agree with something. That's immature. Also, think about the fact that I may not like the same things you do. As a friend of mine pointed out 'this is a site to type up what you want to type up, not to type up what is popular'. Honestly, I respect you opinion. It's when idiots like you try to shove it down my throat is when I get pissed off. If you are not going to calm down and review like a mature person. Don't review. I don't want to deal with it.

******************{Leomitch} - **that scene with Minato laughing his ass of was priceless! Also i know the techniuge that Hinata is learning but i am not gonna spoil it. why? that will ruin the fun in finding it out. and finaly i hope Bakake and Whorera get beaten in the right way. Keep it up!

******************_Answer_:** I made that scene for the whole purpose of getting a laugh. I thought I made it pretty obvious what the technique was but your right some non-fans might not've caught on. Nice nicknames, too, even if they are crude.

******************{NaruHina} - **Wow someone took Wacko12 challenge. I thought no one was going to take any challenge's of his since what happen to Devilz.  
Watch out becasue Wacko12 likes to takes chapter contents and claim them for himself.

_**Answer:**_ If you haven't noticed already, I'm trying to be as original as possible. Don't worry about me, I'm trying my best not to steal ideas and if I do I will ask permission first.

**Symbolism Answer**

Shinko means faith. It has to do with both of their attributes and vocations. Mahotsukai represents the type of techniques they know as mentioned above. Yakana from the word that means Kindness represents her attribute. One person brought up Yin and Yang. Very good job. But one thing I hid very well was when I described the location where Kaosu was. He was in the _western_ end of the city. Think about this:

Where does the sun set?

What does this represent in terms of the day?

What does the day represent in terms of human life?

His wife had died so its not about her. What could that mean for Kaosu?

You don't need to review. It's just food for thought.


	6. As Time Passes

**Disclaimer - I do not own Naruto.**

**Chapter 6 - As Time Passes**

* * *

Tsunade was in her office dealing with the Great Hokage Infinite Paperwork Curse. As expected, it was a huge and utter bore. However, she had the motivation to get it done and to get it done fast. Why you might ask? Well, she had been working practically around the clock to get all her work for next the week and a half done. This was because two years were finally up. Once she got these last few stacks of paperwork done, she was going to gather together the Konoha 12, as hard as that number was to say given who two of them were, and their senseis to go to Uzushiogakure with Jiraiya. She was ready to see that boy again.

The boy who was the Rikudo Sennin Reborn.

Jiraiya had told her of his encounter with the Harbinger of Yami and the stunning revelations he recieved afterward.

"_Stunning?_" Tsunade chuckled as she thought back. "_That's the understatement of the century_."

* * *

_**Flashback**_

_**Two years ago. .** ._

_Tsunade was taking a break from paperwork and was stealing a sip of some sake she had hidden from Shizune. That was when she heard a voice calling from behind her._

_"Tsunade-hime," Tsunade turned around in surprise to see Jiraiya crouching on the windowsill. She was starting to see why her sensei hated it, "Jiraiya, what are you doing here?"_

_Jiraiya jumped into the office and around to the other side of the desk, "I need to speak with you in private."_

_Tsunade saw the seriousness in the Sennin's face and ordered the ANBU out of the room. When they were gone she gave him a look asking him what had happened, "I just returned from Uzushiogakure."_

_Tsunade's eyes widened and then nodded, "So what happened?"_

_"Uzushio has been fully rebuilt. It was as if the village was never attacked in the first place."_

_"What?!"_

_"Apparently, Naruto and Kaosu had been busy."_

_Tsunade blinked, "So you believe him now?"_

_"Yes and you'll understand why in a second," Tsunade nodded and motioned him to continue. "I had gotten to the main gate of the village and I was greeted by Kaosu. We got into a fight that forced me into Sage Mode. . . and he still beat my skull into the ground. Literally."_

_Tsunade was practically gaping. This man had beaten Jiraiya at his most powerful. How strong was he? Jiraiya continued, "He was very fast and strong. He combined those two flawlessly. It felt like you had hit me once or twice. He is very skill with a scythe and even managed to cut a Rasengan in half causing it to detonate before I was ready. He also used techniques he referred to as 'Kage Majustsu'. It was very powerful and didn't require hand signs."_

_Tsunade leaned back in her chair as she let it soak all in. After a few moments she gazed at Jiraiya, "What types of techniques did he use?"_

_"This was this powerful blasting technique that stopped my Senpo: Goemon. He had another technique that caused a black spike to quickly shoot from the ground. He had yet another that covered the area in shadowy mist that he could disappear and reappear into. He could even control that technique to the point of snapping his fingers to summon four cyclones of the shadowy mist to hide himself for ambush tactics further. The only reasons I wasn't butchered during that point of the fight was due to my quick reflexes and my instincts screaming at me to move."_

_Tsunade tensed as her eyes went wide. The fact that Jiraiya said the only time he was close to death was when he peeped on her and now he was stating that his guy was had almost butchered him on more than one occasion in the span of a single fight. It really gave new light as to just how powerful he was, but she supposed it made sense. The man was the harbinger of a god it would make sense he was very powerful. He needed it to fulfill the god's wishes. Tsunade looked at her comrade, "What about the last technique?"  
_

_Jiraiya half-smiled as he put hand to chin in thought, "That last technique was actually the one that brought an end to the fight. Now that I think about it, it reminds me a lot of Kushina's chakra chains."_

_Tsunade raised an eyebrow, "Really? How so?"_

_"He shot dozens of shadow chains with spearheads at the ends. They flew at me and it ended with a number of the chains piercing my body," Tsunade gasped and looked at Jiraiya as if she were searching for open wounds. Jiraiya laughed, "Don't worry, they surprisingly didn't even leave a wound or anything. But they did retract taking me straight into Kaosu's hand which then smash me into the floor knocking me out."_

_"Sounds like a very tough fight," Tsunade stated matter-of-factually._

_Jiraiya lost his smile and suddenly turned very serious, "Tsunade. I now know why Kaosu called it 'necessary intervention'."_

_Tsunade's face became serious as well, "How so?"_

_"Well, him being the Harbinger of Yami meant that was ordered by the gods but I now know the reason. I trust you know the story of the Rikudo Sennin?"_

_"Who doesn't? It's a very popular myth."  
_

_"Tsunade. It's no myth."_

_Tsunade's eyes widened, "What?"_

_"The Rikudo Sennin is no myth. Neither are the Jubi or the Rinnegan. How do I know this? Because the Sennin's reincarnation walks this earth right now."_

_Tsunade stared in disbelief, "What does this have to do with Naruto?"_

_"Everything Tsunade. The Sage's reincarnation is Naruto and the boy now bears the Rinnegan itself."_

_Tsunade's mouth dropped. If the situation was not so serious, and if Jiraiya had been thinking, the Gama Sennin could have photographed that face and used it as blackmail. Instantly she was on her feet, "He's WHAT?!"_

_"You heard me, Tsunade. That boy passed off as deadlast is the reincarnation of the very founder of the art we practice."_

_"B-but how?!"_

_"I wasn't given the details but this is the least of the shock value. You'll never believe who told me all this."_

_Tsunade looked at her teammate a bit unsure, "Who was it?"_

_Jiraiya took a deep breath, "It was my student, Namikaze Minato, the Yondaime Hokage."_

_Tsunade stared at her fellow Sennin like he had grown a second head, "H-how is that possible? He's dead isn't he?!"_

_"Yes, and technically he still is dead."_

_Tsunade stopped and blinked, "Technically?"_

_Jiraiya nodded, "Yes, allow me to explain as best I can. From what Minato told me, a Rinnegan user has the ability to use a special metal implanted in six bodies and can then control them. These bodies each control one of the six paths the Rinnegan bearer is capable of using in addition to using the five elements. These paths each have their own abilities but again the bodies being used are just technically puppets. Minato mentioned something about the possibility of Kaosu being involved with the return of their memories and just their being in general, but how he did it is still hidden."_

_Tsunade nodded settling down a bit, "So, who are the other paths?"_

_Jiraiya paused a bit. This was going to be interesting, "The other paths are Minato's wife, Uzumaki Kushina, your grandmother, Uzumaki Mito, your grandfather, Senju Hashirama, your great-uncle, Senju Tobirama, and our sensei, Sarutobi Hiruzen."_

_Tsunade blinked twice before she fainted back into her chair. Jiraiya smiled, "And I haven't even told her about the paths' abilities yet."_

* * *

Tsunade shook her head, _"Those paths of his sure do have some powerful abilities. Gravity manipulation, mind reading, Chakra absorbtion. . . it's no wonder Naruto's past life was just so powerful._"

She looked down at her paperwork and sighed, "_Hopefully with the return of the past Hokages we can fix the displacement of power that Konoha has suffered._"

A knock came from the door.

"Enter," Tsunade ordered and with that, the elder Danzo entered. The old war hawk stared down Tsunade before saying, "I trust we are soon going to be leaving to fight this kidnapper of our young Jinchuuriki?"

"You're not going, Danzo," Tsunade frowned. "The Daimyo gave permission only to the Konoha 12 and their senseis as well as myself and Jiraiya to go. You are not going."

"You have no right to deny me this chance to see battle again."

"I didn't deny you anything, Danzo. The Daimyo said no. That is finally."

Danzo looked at her and shook his head, "Very well."

As Danzo left he smirked. It didn't matter. He still had Sai on the team going and that was good enough. After he was gone Tsunade sighed.

Despite acting oblivious for the sake of face with the civilian populace and the shinobi forces, she knew very well that the civilian council and the elders were grabbing more and more power as the months went by. She was slowly becoming a figurehead and she knew it.

"_This has to stop,_" she thought to herself. "_But I can't do anything without solid proof or I'll turn the populace and the shinobi against me. Hopefully their return, especially the return of my grandfather and of Minato, will help solve that._"

With that, she returned to her paperwork, determined to finish quickly so she and the four teams could get going.

* * *

Hinata had just finished gathering supplies for the trip. She was finally going to see Naruto again. She had kept her promise and had trained very hard to the point of reaching the rank of Jonin. Two others in the Konoha 11 had made it ti Tokubetsu Jonin. Her cousin Neji was one of them though that was no real surprise. The other was, surprisingly, Shikamaru.

Sometime after Naruto's visit, the Wave, Spring, Suna, and Tea had reopened trade with Konoha. It wasn't anywhere near as good of a trade as it had been, but they were more willing to comply. She had always suspected Naruto had something to do with it as she knew that while the Konoha populace would probably always be ungrateful to Naruto, he still considered the place his home.

But back to her original point. With the restart of trade, the Kazekage Gaara's elder sister, Temari, had become the Suna Ambassador to Konoha. She had formed a close relationship with Shikamaru and eventually the two started dating after Shikamaru had an apparently tense conversation with her brothers. She had gotten his rear in gear and had forced him to take the Jonin Exams, which he passed, and ended up a Tokubetsu Jonin as did Temari around the same time. She had also pushed Neji to get into a relationship with Tenten and they were slowly hanging out more. She was sure they'd be dating soon.

The rest of the Konoha 12 had all made Chunin. Her own teammates, Shino and Kiba, were training for the next jonin exams that would come the following year as were rest of the teams. Her being a jonin meant she was much more free of her standard team as unfortunately didn't see them as much do to going on straight Jonin missions and because three teams were now missing one member every now and then many of the teams mixed to go on missions.

The one team no one ever wanted to pair up with was the remade _Team Seven_. No one wanted to call it that but Sasuke and Sakura insisted and finally they just gave up. Their team was now led by a jonin with a less than spectacular record named Shinrai Nai, who now taught Sasuke, Sakura, and some shinobi trained by one of the village elders named Sai.

The boy was _pale_. A making-ghosts-look-black pale, too. Apparently, he had some ability with ink or some such. Hinata shrugged. She didn't care. She was a jonin now and didn't have to worry about such things.

"_But_," Hinata thought. "_I do feel sorry for Kiba, Shino, and Akamaru as well as Kurenai-sensei. They still have to put up with their egos and that one boy's lack of one._"

She herself had improved a lot in the past two years. She had fulfilled her vow and mastered the Rasengan and, though she never did show anyone that technique save for one person, she mastered many other techniques of the Hyuuga clan. She had even managed to impress her father. She did, however ,owe her great improvement to the one person who knew she had the Rasengan technique. . .

* * *

_**Flashback**_

_**Two years ago. . .**_

_Hinata was in her secluded training area again. She had finished the first stage and had almost completed the second stage of the Rasengan. She was concentrating very hard to get it right._

_"Come on, you stupid ball!" Hinata screamed in her head. "I've trained in this for over a week and a half! Pop!"_

_And right on cue, the rubber ball burst. Hinata blinked and thought, "Wow, I should have screamed at it to pop a week ago."_

_She suddenly froze when she heard clapping right behind her._

_"Right in my blind spot," Hinata thought. She turned around quickly to see Jiraiya of the Sennin leaning up against a tree._

_"I must say," Jiraiya spoke as he stopped clapping. "That was a very good I must admit. To get this far in the Rasengan training this fast and by yourself is quite a feat."_

_"Jiraiya-sama. . .," Hinata said surprised. "I-I can explain. I-"_

_Jiraiya held out his hand, "There's no need to explain. Kurenai and Kakashi started noticing your surprisingly happy and strange behavior recently and informed the Hokage who informed me after I took a trip to Uzushiogakure, where Naruto is."_

_"You saw Naruto?" Hinata asked stunned._

_"No, I did met Kaosu though. He beat the crap out of me but he did mention Naruto. I was told who he is and everything. Though he did call Naruto 'Lover Boy'," he playfully put his hand on his chin and smirked. "Now I wonder why he'd call Naruto that."_

_Hinata blushed and poke her two index fingers against each other. Jiraiya laughed a bit, "Thought so."_

_Jiraiya then quit his teasing and simply smiled at her, "So he gave you something to learn the Rasengan I see."_

_Hinata nodded and Jiraiya walked towards her, "Well, would you like any help?"_

_Hinata blinked, "You want to help me master the Rasengan?"_

_Jiraiya's smile widened, "Of course! If the gaki trusts you enough to learn the technique then I will help you become a master at it."_

_Hinata gave the Sennin a wide smile, "Thank you Jiraiya-sama!"_

_"That'd be Jiraiya-sensei now wouldn't it?"_

_"Hai!" Hinata looked at her sensei for a moment before asking. "Do you think you could train me to use the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu?"_

_Jiraiya smirked, "Want to be able to use techniques Naruto can I see."_

_Hinata blushed brighter and nodded, "That and I promised Naruto I'd be a jonin by the time we meet again. The Kage Bunshin no Jutsu will help me with that."_

_Jiraiya nodded, "So you promised Naruto you'd be a jonin in two years?"_

_"Hopefully up to tokubetsu jonin."_

_Jiraiya shooked his head and surprised Hinata with his next statement, "No, that won't cut it. For Naruto. . . I will train you so that you become a jonin. I'm going to help you really impress my godson. Your going to make him proud! Mark my words!"_

_Hinata blinked in surprise then smiled, "Hai, Jiraiya-sensei!"_

* * *

Hinata smiled. Jiraiya had helped teach her and get her strong enough to make Jonin and she was grateful for that. While he couldn't train her all the time he did train her every once and awhile. She did, however, adopt Naruto's nickname for the perv. Jiraiya didn't do anything like that around her though. He didn't want to deal with Hinata's or Neji's Juuken, the wrath of the Hyuuga Clan, or, even worse, the wrath of Tsunade and Naruto. Especially Naruto. She was his girlfriend and he didn't want to get his ass beaten down by Naruto and his paths, whom Jiraiya had told Hinata about.

Needless to say, she was shocked by that. The fact that Naruto, theoretically, had control of four of the past hokages and the wives were two of them was staggering. It was even more so when she found out the two wives were from Naruto's clan and that one of them was Naruto's mother. The biggest shock, however, was finding out Naruto's father was the Yondaime. That had surprised her incredibly.

Right now, however, she couldn't wait to see Naruto and meet his parents. Though she did have this nagging feeling that they were going to tease the two of them half to death.

She shook her head, "_It's all worth it_."

She got her bag for the trip ready and waited for the summons of the Hokage that it was time to go.

* * *

Those of the Konoha 12 who still respected Naruto as a good friend, except Hinata, who was still preparing to leave, had gathered together at one of the training ground. They were all ready to go; they were just waiting for their senseis, Hinata, and the two loyal Sennin. They didn't care if _Team Seven _showed up to go or not.

Over the last two years Team Seven and the other teams had grown rather distant. They'd work together for missions, albeit very reluctantly, but outside of that Team Seven was avoided for the most part. This made Sasuke and Sakura angry as they wondered why they would abandon them, the top shinobi and kunoichi from their academies for the deadlast.

"I hope Hokage-sama gets here soon. I'm ready to rumble!" Kiba shouted.

"Troublesome," Shikamaru grunted.

"She probably finishing up her paperwork," Ino commented. "You know she's been working endlessly on that you know."

They all nodded. Just then they heard somebody land nearby and they turned to see Hinata standing there. She smiled, "Hey, guys."

"Hey, Hinata," the other's greeted. Hinata looked around, "Jiraiya-sama and Tsunade-hime aren't here yet?"

They shook there heads and Choji asnwered, "Not yet, but they should be here soon."

Hinata nodded.

"Yeah!" Kiba shouted. "And then we can kick that damn kidnapper's ass!"

"Um. . . Kiba. . ." Hinata began just as their senseis appeared as did Team Seven.

"Hi, sensei," the teams said in unison. They completely ignored Team Seven. Team Seven's new leader, Shinrai Nai, cleared his throat, "Aren't you going to greet us?"

The man was in his late 30s easily and was dress in standard shinobi grab. He had slightly messy brown hair and brown eyes. There wasn't much else to him than that. From what they had heard, he was decent in Ninjutsu, Genjutsu, and Taijutsu but he didn't specialize in really any field. The teams deadpanned.

"Not really," Kiba stated. Then he turned to Hinata. "So, what were you saying."

"She was going to say that the reason we are going to Uzushiogakure is not to fight," They all blinked as Tsunade and Jiraiya walked up from behind them. The Konoha 12 blinked in confusion.

"What do you mean, Hokage-sama?" Tenten asked confused.

"What I mean is that we are going to Uzushiogakure to see Naruto, yes, but the supposed kidnapper isn't our enemy."

The people present who didn't know all widened their eyes.

"What?! What do you mean by that?!" Kiba shouted.

"We trained extra hard to be ready to fight this guy and your telling us now he's not the enemy?!" Ino shouted as well.

"You guys can fight him if you want," Jiraiya commented. "But don't expect to win. I fought the guy two years ago when I heard he was in Uzushio, but he utterly destroyed me, even when I was at full power."

They just looked at him in surprise, even Kakashi, who hadn't learned of Jiraiya's misadventure at Uzushio two years prior. Jiraiya looked at them, "The man's identity is Mahostukai Kaosu, he is the Harbinger of Yami, the God of Darkness. My summons, the toads, confirmed this fact."

The Konoha 12 were practically reeling at the thought. The man they had trained themselves to fight against was a servant of a god and a dark god at that. Sasuke's eyes narrowed, "Why did this Harbinger take Naruto then?"

They looked at him. They were surprised he even cared. Tsunade answered, "To train him."

"WHAT?!" they all shouted but were silenced by Tsunade's order.

"Quiet! Now listen up, Naruto has become something far more powerful than any of us here. What he has become shall be explained by Naruto and Kaosu themselves once we reach Uzushiogakure. Now, don't ask any more questions on the subject. They will all be answered upon are arrival. Are we clear?"

"Hai, Hokage-sama," they answered reluctantly though Sasuke was inwardly seething, "_He was trained by the servant of a god?! How could that dobe achieve anything?! He's deadlast! I refuse to believe he could be more powerful than all of us!_"

"Are you ready?" the Godaime Hokage asked. They all nodded. "Right. Let's go!"

Tsunade took off, followed by Hinata and Jiraiya and then by Konoha 12. Their next stop: Uzushiogakure.

* * *

Uzushiogakure.

The Hidden Village of the Whirlpool.

Once one of the most powerful shinobi villages and had once been destroyed had now been raised up again like a phoenix rising from its ashes. Who was the cause for this? It was the Rikudo Sennin Reborn. The Founder of Ninjutsu's reincarnation had was finally trained to the point where his skill, power, and the number and variety of techniques could do the title of the Rikudo Sennin justice.

The paths themselves had trained themselves as well. They had sparred with each other when they weren't fulfilling their own tasks given by Kaosu or by themselves and they each continuously pointed out specific flaws in both fighting and in their techniques with their own special ones. One thing they specifically trained in was their own personal abilities that they received as a result of being one of the Rikudo Sennin's paths. Since Naruto had all the memories of the Sennin, he was the one training them in their abilities. Kaosu always teased them how a boy in his early teens was teaching four Hokages and two high S-ranked kunoichi and he was always rewarded with a glare or a punch to the arm. He flinched at neither one.

At least while no one was looking anyway.

All of the paths were easily up to SS-rank while Naruto. . . well, Naruto with the knowledge of his past life, the training of both his Six Paths and of Kaosu, his insanely high chakra reserves along with the incredible amount of shadow clones he could produce, and the Kyuubi itself all made Naruto worthy of the title of his past self, the Shinobi no Kami. More so than Hiruzen himself deserved it. His paths had mainly each taught them their specialties:

Minato taught him Ninjutsu and Taijutsu.

Mito and Kushina both trained him in Kenjutsu and Fuuinjutsu.

Tobirama aided Naruto in his chakra control and managed to get it to near perfect.

Hashirama focus more on elemental training for Naruto.

Hiruzen taught Naruto more along the lines of Genjutsu, since Minato covered Ninjutsu and Taijutsu, as well as leadership since, as the actual Sennin, Naruto would technically be in command of them.

Kaosu, after his training two years ago, focused more on Naruto's sensory abilities, his stealth, and his battle tactics as well, much like he had done two years prior during their three month training session.

The outcome was beyond compared. Naruto was no longer the Sennin's reincarnation; he _was_ the Rikudo Sennin. He was the original Shinobi no Kami. He was the Founder of Ninjutsu. He was the Jinchuuriki of the Juubi. And his paths and Kaosu could all see it. When Kaosu had proclaimed him as such at the end of two years, Minato and Kushina hugged their child just like they did the day they were brought back. They couldn't stop saying how proud they were of him. Everyone there shed at least one tear in happiness. The family of three practically sobbed their joy.

It was quite touching.

Currently, all six paths and Kaosu were waiting outside the Uzukage Tower. Naruto was inside changing into the garments of his past self given to him by Kaosu. They didn't ask how he knew what the Sennin had worn; they guessed it had something to do with his vocation. Connection to his eyes and ears was cut off from the other paths though he could still see and hear what they did. They were all smiling. They knew by now the Konoha shinobi were on their way and they couldn't wait to see their faces at the bombshells they were going to drop.

"I think half of them are going to faint," Minato commented.

"I think only a quarter of them would personally," Tobirama said.

"No, I think I'd be more than that," Mito stated.

"How about we just make a bet then?" Kaosu suggested. They all looked at him strangely. "There are going to be a total of about. . . let's see. . . 12 + 2 + 5 = . . . 19. There will be 19 people coming to Uzushio. How about we all say the number of people who we think are going to faint and the person with the closest number when we get there wins."

"Sounds good but what are the rules?" Kushina asked smirking.

"1) No picking the same number. 2) The same person fainting twice doesn't count. 3) All the losers must. . . hmm. . . sing an embarrassing song in front of the entire group once they get settled in. Sound good."

They all nodded.

Kaosu cleared his throat, "I say 10."

"7," this was Hashirama.

"12," Minato stated.

"11," Kushina bid.

"8," Mito called out.

"5," Hiruzen spoke.

"6," Tobirama said.

They all shook hands in agreement.

"Done yet?" came a voice from the doorway. They all smirked when they saw him. Kaosu nodded.

"Yes. Are you ready. . . Rikudo Sennin-sama?"

Naruto stepped out of the doorway. His Rinnegan eyes gazing upon his company. He wore a black shirt under a black samurai chest piece as well as black pants with an orange sash. He wore black sandals with orange socks and also wore a haori. The haori was unique. It was white and there were three magatamas on either side of the high collar. On the back was a Rinnegan eye and below it were three rows of three magatamas. Around Naruto's neck was a necklace of six red magatamas and in his hands was a golden monk's staff.

By Naruto's side in its sheath was a sword that Kaosu said was one of the swords that the Sennin actually used and the very sword he used when he faced the Juubi. Naruto confirmed this himself. The sword's name was Ekusukariba. It was a simple sword but a brilliant one as well. It was a tsurugi with a handle wrapped in fine leather with a single gold and white gem on the blade collar. The blade itself was a metal that even Mito admitted to have never had seen before and that it was truly a one of a kind blade. Naruto said he had no memories making the sword and said that it was given to his past self by an old man by the name of Genji, who vanished shortly afterward. They decided to leave it at that.

Naruto smirked, "Ready as I'll ever be, Kaosu-san. It's time for the Rikudo Sennin to enter the world."

* * *

**And done with this chapter. Now the jonin's name, Shinra Nai, basically means 'Do not trust' and I sort of did that as a joke seeing as how Danzo put him there. As for Naruto's sword, yeah, I was suggested to add a sword and it's in the Sennin's picture so I gave him one. Right now the Silver and Gold Brothers have the other and those treasured tools which I think will be really amusing when Naruto eventually encounters them. If you haven't guessed by now, the sword's name, Ekusukariba is actually the Japanese word for Excalibur. I don't know, I just like that sword's name and I can't think up a better one just yet.**

**As for the bet, I now have a poll up for anyone willing to take a guess at who's going to win. The highest isn't necessarily going to be the one that gets it, it's just to see who you think would win.**

**Anyway, I'm going to be out with family tomorrow. I'll try to get a chapter out but I wouldn't expect it.**

**Thank you all for your support and please review!**

**~Teddypro**

**Response to Reviews**

**{Wacko12} -** if you're going to have OC's join Naruto, then I think one should be a swordsman and perhaps a member of the Uzumaki clan

**_Answer_: **Honestly, the further I go into this story the more I see that more OCs are going to be inevitable. I like to keep it to as few as possible but I can already see I can't keep that up for long. I don't know about the Uzumaki Clan though a swordsman doesn't seem out of the question at this point.

**{Gold Testament} - **Ok if Jiraiya was a little messed up from the knowledge that Naruto is the Rikudo Sennin reborn then Nagato and Konan are going to completely freak, however, from that there is a good chance that they would join Naruto. After all they seek peace, so what better way to peace than to aid the reincarnation of the Rikudo.

_**Answer: **_That or, at least at first, he'll be in denial claiming he's the Sage reincarnate and try to beat him down. Guess we'll have to wait and see which way I want to take it at that point.

**{Oniix} -***claps* don't see how I was being immature dude I was just saying and if its cuz me cussing I do that like a sailor or however the fuck you spell it. and its funny how you say im immature and disrespectful but then you go on and call me an idiot and I wasn't "shoving it down your throat" as you so elegantly called it. I was stating an opinion. but don't act like im a dick just for stating an opinion and if its cuz of me cussing well that's just something I do my mom can vouch for me on that but I will say I am sorry if I offended you because that wasn't my intention.

**_Answer_: ***nods head respectfully* Apology expected. And yeah, I do tend to overreact on stuff. I can deal with people saying 'I don't like this idea because. . .' it when stuff like what you said last time happens like 'wtf why the f*** did you right that in that's so f*ing stupid', yeah, that type of attitude suddenly makes me turn passionate and gets me to have a 'Nostalgia Critic Rant' on their ass. But I'm glad you apologized and I'd like to apologize as well for going apes*** on you.

Though please note. Don't say 'I wasn't' during an argument because you should consider that's how it could've come across to the other person. You should say something like 'I meant it like this' or 'I didn't mean it like that'. And I know I can be like that, too, and I do feel bad afterwards but it's still good advice that more people should follow.

**{Pyr00tje} - **Glad I did read past the first chapter. I normally tend to stop reading a story when it covers that many clichés right off the bat but hey, I got past the first and started liking the story and I really do wanna see what happens next! Kudos!

**_Answer_: **Dammit. You mean I still hit a lot of cliches. . . T^T


	7. Naruto the Rikudo Sennin

**Disclaimer - I do not own Naruto.**

**Chapter 7 - Naruto the Rikudo Sennin**

* * *

They had arrived. They had finally arrived.

Tsunade's group from Konoha had finally arrived at Uzushiogakure, a mighty village that had once been destroyed but was now completely restored. This surprised those in the group who didn't know, which was almost all of them.

"How it it possible?" Kurenai asked in shock and awe. "I thought this village was destroyed!"

"It was," Jiraiya said simply.

"Then how has it been restored?" Asuma asked.

"Naruto and Kaosu have been busy," was the simple answer.

"Indeed we have been," came a voice from behind them. They turned to see a man cloaked in black behind them. The shinobi save for Kakashi, Tsunade, Hinata, and Jiraiya instantly went on their guard. The man simply laughed. And removed his hood revealing to them his long black hair that was in a 'dragontail' and his midnight blue, blackened eyes. He gave a chuckle at their faces before continuing, "I am Mahotsukai Kaosu, Harbinger of Yami, the God of Darkness."

The group tensed. This was the man who took Naruto. He was the servant of a god.

He was Naruto's mentor. They lowered their guard. Kaosu smiled and then turned to the Godaime Hokage, "He should be ready shortly. Shall I lead you inside?"

Tsunade nodded, "Please."

Kaosu walked passed them and waved his hand. The massive gate to the Uzushio opened wide for them as they passed through and shut tightly after they had entered. The village itself was very beautiful though it was very eerie due to the lack of people in it. The city itself was clean and neat. The pathways were made from cobblestone and were very smooth. Much better for walking then dirt, especially rocky dirt.

As Kaosu led them through the abandoned village, the members of the Hokage's Team couldn't help but think. . .

"_So this is the man Naruto talked about?_" Hinata asked herself. "_He seems very mysterious and dark, but if Naruto says he's okay then I'll trust him._"

"_So this was the home of my grandmother? It sure is beautiful_," Tsunade thought. "_I hope people start to inhabit this place again. I'm sure baa-chan would love that. Well, I guess I could just ask her. I will be seeing her soon._"

A tear fell from Tsunade's eye and Jiraiya noticed, "_Must be thinking about her grandparents and great uncle. This is going to be both touching and awkward when we meet them._"

"_So 'that's' the Harbinger of Yami. He doesn't seem that tough, I bet Sasuke-kun could beat him,_" Sakura thought to herself while Sasuke was glaring at the man, "_He's Naruto's mentor. Well, if he trained that worthless dobe then I'm sure I can get him to train me._"

Sai, as emotionless as ever, looked at their guide through the Village, "_So he's the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki's mentor? I will have to keep an eye on him for my report to Danzo-sama._"

"_So this is the guy who took Naruto?_" Kiba thought with a frown. "_And he's not the enemy? Why do I have a hard time believing it?_"

"_So this is the Harbinger of Yami?_" Shikamaru thought suspiciously. "_I can start to believe why Tsunade says Naruto is on a whole new level from us. This guy's mere presence makes him seem very dark and powerful, and if he trained Naruto, it honestly wouldn't surprise me if he was that powerful. This is so troublesome._"

"Kaosu does seem very nice," Tenten thought. "Even if his presence does scream 'You-are-going-to-die'. I wonder how strong Naruto is since he spent two years with this guy. I hope he didn't gain that aura that this guy gives off."

"_I can certainly see why this guy is called the Harbinger of Yami,_" Neji thought as he used his Byakugan to scan Kaosu's chakra. "_Whatever he has isn't chakra but it is very similar and is very dark and powerful. Suddenly, I'm glad he's our ally._"

"_Kaosu certainly knows how to pull off the sudden appearance very well_," Kakashi thought think back to when he met them at the gate. "_He did it at the Hokage's Office, too. I guess being Yami's Harbinger has it's advantages._"

"_Hinata seems surprisingly relaxed_," thought Kurenai as they glanced at the girl. Despite being told this guy wasn't a bad guy and that he trained Naruto, she expected Hinata to be very edgy and suspicious around him. She seemed very calm and, dare she say, trusting of him. "_Why is that? I'll have to keep an eye on her._"

Finally, they reached their destination: the Uzukage Tower. It looked a lot like the Hokage Tower though it was a bit bigger, was a bit more regal in design, and was colored a darker shade of red than the Hokage Tower. Not to mention it did look a bit more like a tower with the taller, narrower building in the center of it. Needless to say it did impress the Konoha-nin. Kaosu turned around to face them, "Now he should be here any-"

CRASH!

Naruto suddenly landed next to Kaosu in his Sennin gear. His head was down and his staff held out to the side. Many of the Konoha-nin gasped and others jumped in surprise. No one had sensed him and he was fast. Kaosu didn't even flinch. In fact, he smirked, "Dramatic entrance much?"

Naruto quickly got up and faced him smirking. He did a dramatic spinning of his staff while he did so, "What's your point? Their reactions were priceless!"

The two chuckled to themselves before facing the Konoha-nin. They all either tensed or gasped or both. Naruto's Rinnegan eyes looked at them and raised an eyebrow, "What? I don't get a hello?"

Hinata was the first to recover, "H-Hello, Naruto-kun."

Naruto looked at her and grinned widely, "Hi, Hinata-chan! Wow! You're looking as beautiful as ever!"

Hinata blushed a bit while the others, who didn't know how Naruto's little misadventure in Konoha with Kaosu two years ago, blinked and then preceded to gape, "_When on Earth did Naruto and Hinata get this close? And did Naruto just call Hinata beautiful?_"

Kiba, however, voiced this opinion, "When did this happen?!"

Naruto and Hinata both looked at him before Naruto laughed, "To tell you the truth, I visited Konoha in disguise about two years ago. I eavesdropped on one of your conversations and I heard you talking about Hinata-chan's feelings for me. I revealed myself to her and we got into a relationship."

"Wait a minute," Kurenai pointed at her student and shouted. "You knew all this time that Naruto was okay and never told us?! WHY?!"

"Naruto-kun asked me not to."

Kurenai blinked and sighed. That did make sense. Naruto then asked Hinata, "So, Hinata-chan, did you get to where I asked you to be?"

Hinata smiled at the boy she loved, "Yes Naruto-kun. I am the only full jonin in the Konoha 12 and I have mastered that technique you gave me."

Her teammates and comrades blinked, "Technique? What technique?"

Hinata smiled at them as she held out her hand. Slowly, a spiraling ball of chakra formed in her hand. Those who didn't know collective stifled a gasp. Neji gaped, "He-He taught you the Rasengan?"

Hinata nodded as she let the technique faded. Naruto smirked proudly and hugged her, "Congratulations, Hinata-chan! I knew you could do it!"

Hinata pushed herself deeper into the embrace wearing a smile filled with happiness and a joyful pride, "Thank you, Naruto. I love you."

"Love you, too, Hinata-chan," with that, Naruto kissed Hinata. Ino and Tenten awed while Sasuke and Sakura glared. Jiraiya was thinking that he was soon going to have the best material for his next book and Tsunade, seeing his perverted psyche kick in, silently promised to kick his ass if she ever saw him try anything with those two. Kaosu then began to clap, "Good job, lover boy. Such a touching moment. Congratulations for getting back together with your girlfriend."

Naruto deadpanned at the man, "Thanks for killing the mood, Yukai-han-sensei."

"I'm Yami's Harbinger, lover boy,"Kaosu smirked. "I live to ruin happy moments."

Naruto rolled his eyes when Shikamaru caught his attention by clearing his throat, "Now that you've reestablished your little romance with Hinata. Would you mind telling us what happened to you?"

"Yeah, what's with your eyes?" Tenten asked curiously.

"My eyes?" Naruto blinked, still holding onto Hinata. Slowly, Naruto smirked, "They are then Rinnegan, greatest of the Three Great Dojutsu."

"Impossible!" Sasuke snapped. "The Sharingan is the greatest! Don't you dare take us for fools!"

"He's right, Sasuke," Jiraiya simply stated gaining their attention. "The Rinnegan, also known as the Eyes of God, is the most powerful dojutsu in the world. It has many abilities that can make our A and S ranked jutsu seem like Academy techniques."

The others gaped. How was that even possible. Seeing their faces, Jiraiya smirked and decided to elaborate, even if it was just to throw them through another loop, "It's main abilities include being able to control all five basic elements, which means that by extension all the sub-elements, and being able to see what clones or summons with the same eyes as well as what they hear. Also, like the Byakugan, they can see chakra networks as well, just not as strongly."

They all stared at Naruto like he grew another head. The boy shrugged, "What?"

Jiraiya chuckled, "That's not all, however. . ."

Most of the group facefaulted.

"How could that not be it?!" Ino shouted at the Gama Sennin after he recovered. Jiraiya smirked, "He also has access to the six paths."

Ino blinked, "Six. . . paths. . .?"

"Why does that sound a lot like the old Rikudo Sennin myth?" Kiba asked, mainly to himself though others agreed. Jiraiya inwardly laughed, "_Time for another hilarious bombshell_."

"Simple," Tsunade said cutting off Jiraiya before he spoke, much to his annoyance. "The Rikudo Sennin is no myth. The Rinnegan was his dojutsu."

The bombshell hit the group like an atom bomb. Kakashi was the one who managed to speak, "W-wait. . . you mean Naruto has the dojutsu of the Founder of Ninjutsu?"

Tsunade nodded and Naruto spoke up, "It goes deeper than that, but yes."

"_Deeper? How on earth could it go deeper than that?_" all the jonin instructors thought at the same time.

"Anyway, back to the six paths," Naruto state regaining their attention. "The six paths I can utilize are the Deva Path, the Animal Path, the Asura Path, the Human Path, the Preta Path, and the Naraka Path. The Deva Path gives me gravity-manipulating techniques. The Animal Path grants me the ability to summon any animal of my choosing regardless of whether or not I have a contract with them or not. The Asura Path gives me the ability to summon and utilize any weapon I choose. The Human Path allows me to read people's mind through touch and tear their souls from their bodies. Then theirs the Preta Path, which allows me to absorb all chakra-based attacks making Ninjutsu effectively useless against me. Then finally we have the Naraka Path which has the ability to summon the King of Hell, who can devour captives if they tells lies or revive the six paths themselves."

They were all, needless to say, dumbstuck by this. They couldn't wrap themselves around the fact that a dojutsu, wielded by _Naruto_ no less, had this much power. Naruto laughed a bit at this. Asuma then thought about something, "What did you mean by 'reviving the six paths themselves', Naruto?"

The other's blinked and noticed it as well. What did Naruto mean by that? Even Hinata looked a bit confused at what Naruto had said. Naruto smirked, "I was wondering who would notice that. Good job, Sarutobi-san."

Asuma blinked at the lack of a _-sensei_ to it but shrugged it off. Naruto then continued, "One other ability the Rinnegan has is the ability to take six dead bodies and, after given them numerous piercings with a special kind of metal, controls them. They then act like another person that I control. Much like Kankuro's puppets except, due to Kaosu's tweaking, have their old personalities and memories back."

"So what you're saying is," Ino began, not daring to believe it. "You can control six bodies as if they were clones?!"

"Pretty much," Naruto shrugged. Then he smirked mischievously, "And you all know who they are."

They all blinked, "We do?"

Naruto snapped his fingers and instantly six people dropped down besides Naruto. When they stood up, there was a collective gasp from everyone. There stood the first four Hokages. There were also two red-haired women that many people remember seeing before. The moment they saw these people, whom she had recognized from a couple books they had read, Hinata and Tenten fainted into Naruto's and Neji's arms respectively. Kaosu broke down laughing and both him and the paths thought simultaneously "_Well, that's two._"

Kakashi was the first to speak after the two had woken up, "S-s-sen-sensei?!"

Minato laughed a bit and said, "Yes, it's me."

"I-I can't believe it!"

Minato shrugged, "Neither can I. Though I do believe it's rather funny."

Kakashi blinked, "What is?"

"That I trained you and then you got to train my son."

"Your son. . . but the only other boy I trained other than Sasuke was-" Kakashi's eyes, both hidden and not, widened in surprise and horror as did the eyes of everyone else save Kaosu, the paths, Tsunade, and Jiraiya. Hinata looked at the blonde-haired shinobi she was still in the arms of, "N-Naruto-kun, you're the son of the Yondaime?"

"And me!" the other shinobi turned to see one of the red-haired women finally speak, "I am Uzumaki Kushina, granddaughter of the last Uzukage, and I'm Naruto's mother. Dattebane!"

They blinked, "Dattebane?"

Naruto scratched the back of his head, "Yeah, I really take after my mother. Dattebayo."

Those who still weren't shell-shocked, or glaring pissed off as it were, laughed. Asuma walked up to his father and nodded at the younger version of his old man.

"Otou-sama," he said simply but the once-old man shook his head and smiled, "Otou-san is just fine, Asuma. And remember, tears are a sign of humanity not weakness."

Tears began to drip from Asuma's eyes as he embraced his father in a strong huge. Asuma's students couldn't help but smile as father and son were reunited.

As this was going on, Hashirama, Tobirama, and Mito walked up to Tsunade. They looked over her once before Hashirama spoke, "Tsunade-chan, you look. . . young."

"Special transformation technique."

"I see," Mito smirked. "So you don't want to age gracefully?"

"Not a chance, baa-chan."

The four shared a laughed and everyone's attention was regain by Kaosu, "Now I think we should get to probably the biggest bombshell we're going to drop today."

The others blinked. There was more to all this?!

"Now that you know the Rikudo Sennin exists we will tell you now that the Rikudo Sennin himself has been reborn into this world."

"WHAT?!"

"The Rikudo Sennin is alive?" Kiba shouted.

"Impossible!" Sakura agreed.

"I agree," Kurenai nodded. "The Rikudo Sennin being reincarnated doesn't seem very possible."

"Really?" Jiraiya asked rhetorically. " So, the founder of our way of life, who sealed a massive demon which was original ALL OF THE BIJU COMBINED, created the biju by splitting the beast's chakra, creating the moon as the beast's body, and who was the ancestor of the Uchiha, Senju, AND Uzumaki clans couldn't find a way to return himself into the world. Kurenai, the Rikudo Sennin Reborn is real. The proof is right here."

"W-What do you mean, Jiraiya?" Kurenai's eyes widened. She already knew the answer as did everyone else but they didn't dare believe it was true.

"I am the Rikudo Sennin," Naruto stated. "I am the Founder of Ninjutsu Reborn Again. I am the original Shinobi no Kami. I am the one who shall establish peace and order in this world."

They all just stared for what seemed like eternity, until Tenten, Ino, Kiba, Lee, Gai, Lee, Kurenai, and Kakashi promptly fainted.

"_Let's see that's one, two, three. . . five, six. . . nine people_," Kaosu sighed. "_Um, no one's winning right now._"

Team Seven was seething. There was no way that the dobe was the reincarnation of the most powerful shinobi in the world.

And the first one to ever exist.

Well, Team Seven minus Sai. Sai was observing this situation and knew Danzo would find this interesting but also made things much more complicated for him and ROOT.

"Dobe," Sasuke began but Naruto interrupted him.

"Really, teme? You're calling me a dobe still? Your what? A Chunin? And I'm at a level higher than my Six Paths, ALL of whom are SS-ranked Shinobi. I don't think I'm a dobe anymore, teme."

"Then fight me."

"What? Why would I want to do that?"

"I am going to prove that my Sharingan outclasses you Rinnegan. Fight me now."

Naruto took a deep breath and sighed, "Fine."

"Are you sure that's a good idea, Naruto?" Jiraiya asked his godson.

"He won't say no and he'll end up attacking me anyway. Might as well humble him now."

"Love to see you try, dobe," Sasuke scowled.

"If you two are going to fight," Hashirama stated. "Do it at the training grounds. It's a lot easier to repair that place than in the center of the Village is."

"On that I will concur," Kaosu agreed and turned around. "Follow me."

* * *

At the training grounds, Naruto's paths and the Konoha-nin stood to the side as Naruto and Sasuke faced off in the center. Kaosu was looking back and forth between the two.

"Okay, this is just a simple duel. This is not a death match. If you try to kill you opponent, I will step in and you will be in severe pain for the rest of the week. Am I clear?" Kaosu said menacingly. Some of the bystanders even started to sweat at how dangerously cold his voice was. Naruto nodded, "Hai, Kaosu-sensei."

"Hn," Sasuke grunted.

"Ready?" Kaosu asked rhetorically as Sasuke drew a kunai and Naruto tossed aside his staff and drew Ekusukariba. "BEGIN!"

The instant that was said Naruto stuck his sword into the ground and pulls out several kunais. These, however, were special kunais and ,any of the older shinobi recognized these instantly.

* * *

"Are those Hiraishin kunai?!" Jiraiya practically shouted. Minato grinned, "Of course. Don't you think it makes sense that I teach the Rikudo Sennin, my own SON, the Hiraishin?"

Jiraiya settled down and nodded.

* * *

Naruto ignored the banter between his father and his godfather and threw the Hiraishin kunais around the entire fighting area. As soon as they all hit, Naruto vanished and appeared at one just besides where Sasuke was. The Uchiha barely managed to avoid a swing from Naruto's tsurugi. When he tried to land a blow, Naruto vanished back to one farther away to avoid the hit.

Sasuke then summoned a Fuma Shuriken and threw it towards his former teammate. Much to the Konoha-nin's surprise, Naruto caught the massive, spinning shuriken and used its momentum to spin around and toss it right back to Sasuke. Sasuke jumped out of the way preparing to go through some hand signs.

"I know some high up people in Konoha," Sasuke began. "They offered me this technique even though I'm no jonin yet. I learned it just to spite you."

Naruto rasied an eyebrow as Sasuke went through the hand signs, "**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!**"

Instantly, five shadow clones of Sasuke appeared. Naruto smirked, "You think this is going to get me angry? You performing the Kage Bunshin? I could perform that when I was a _genin_ Sasuke. Your a chunin. Also I can created over a thousand shadow clones. You really think this irks me? Think again."

Naruto seethed his sword and went through his own hand signs, "Let me show you how it's done: **Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**!"

Two dozen clones appeared behind Naruto. All were ready to fight. Suddenly, half of them vanished in a yellow flash and the next thing Sasuke knew all five of his clones were taken out. His clones had been summoned just a couple feet away from some of the Hiraishin kunai scattered throughout the battlefield. Sasuke seethed. Naruto smirked.

* * *

"Guess he forgot those were there," Hashirama mused.

"Must have short-term memory loss," his brother agreed and the two shared a bit of a laugh.

Sakura scowled, "_How dare they make fun of Sasuke-kun. I bet he's just warming up!_"

* * *

Naruto smirked, "Now it's time to introduce one of the Rinnegan's abilities."

All but three of Naruto's clones dispelled and recalled behind Naruto. When they did, Naruto called out his technique, "**Bansho Ten'in.**"

Sasuke suddenly felt himself pulled off the ground and instantly found himself flying toward Naruto, "Wha-?!"

SMASH!

One of Naruto's clones came down from above and kicked him into the ground. Hard. The force of the kick dented the ground and Naruto's clone only used a single foot to crush Sasuke under the powerful force of the downward strike. Then, the clone kicked up and backflipped off of the Uchiha 'Elite' hard enough to make him bounce off the ground. He went high enough into the air for another clone to come and give him an axe kick straight to the ribs, sending him flying to towards the last waiting clone. That clone grabbed Sasuke's hair as he flew by and spun him around much like the original did to the shuriken that Sasuke had thrown at the beginning of the fight. Naruto threw the Uchiha by his hair with great force back at the first clone, who had recovered. The first grabbed the Uchiha's face as it went by and slammed his head with a ground-denting force into the floor. Jiraiya winced as a flashback of déjà vu struck him much like Tsunade's fist did.

The Uchiha was rendered unconscious by the skillfully done combo. The clones dispelled as Naruto walked up to Kaosu, "I take it that's a KO?"

Kaosu glanced at Sasuke before shrugging and playfully saying, "Yeah, probably."

Kaosu grabbed Naruto's arm and held it up, "Winner: Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto!"

"Wait," Sasuke groaned as he got up. His head was bleeding from where it came contact to the ground and he was very sore, but he was determined to not to lose to the dobe. Not a second time. "I'm still going to beat the dobe."

Naruto, Kaosu, the paths, and most of the Konoha-nin shook their heads.

"No, Uchiha," Tsunade authoritatively spoke. "You obviously need healing. Haruno. Do your job as a medic-nin."

"No! I will beat Naruto!" Sasuke shouted. "I will beat this damn-"

"Sasuke," Naruto spoke strongly. Sasuke stopped and glared at him. Naruto remained calm, "Why are you so determined to beat everyone? To become the best?"

"To kill Itachi. To avenge the murderer of my clan!" Sasuke shouted. "That's why I need power. I'll prove I'm strong enough to beat Itachi and avenge my clan!"

"Then why are you so determined to beat _me_?"

"You've beaten me_ twice_ as much as I hate to admit it," Sasuke grunted. "If I can't beat a dobe like you, how can I beat someone like Itachi?!"

Naruto shook his head, "Sasuke. If you could beat me _now_, after I had trained for two straight years with six SS-ranked shinobi and one SS-ranked non-shinobi, and now have the knowledge and memories of my past life, the Founder of Ninjutsu, _as well as_ the full support of Kyuubi no Kitsune, you would be able to rip Itachi to shreds."

Naruto took a deep breath before answering, "Think about this for a minute. When have any of us ever succeeded in something by ourselves? None of us have. I was trained by seven powerful and wise people, the Sennin were trained by the Sandaime, the only other person other than the Rikudo Sennin to receive the title of Shinobi no Kami, and even he was trained by the Shodai and Nidaime."

Naruto looked at his teammate and smiled, "Even when we were teammates we did things just as that: a team. Stop trying to do this by yourself, Sasuke. There is never shame in asking for help. We all need it at some point. If you let us help you, we would help you reach the point you need. Don't focus on your pride and hatred, Sasuke. It will bring your downfall in the long run."

With that, Naruto picked up his staff and back towards the group, "I think we all should relax a bit. It's been a tiring day."

As Naruto walked back towards the Uzukage Tower, Kaosu looked at the other shinobi there, "I will show you each your rooms. Then we can all meet in the mess afterwards. Agreed?"

Seeing no complaints, they all followed Kaosu back to the Uzukage Tower. The paths stayed a little behind chatting to themselves.

"Um. . . so who won the bet?" Kushina asked curiously.

"No one," Hiruzen stated. "Nine people fainted and no one chose that number."

There was a pause before Minato asked, "So did we all lose or. . ."

He trailed off and Hiruzen shrugged, "I have no idea."

Minato blinked, "Huh."

And that was the last thing said as they made their way to the Uzukage Tower.

* * *

**Alright, done and done. Sorry it took so long. Would've had it out like two hours ago but my internet failed on me. Dammit. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed and I'm placing a new poll out about what should happen to Sakura in this fanfiction and this poll will be out a lot longer than the last one. Anyway, hoped you enjoyed and are ready for the next chapter coming soon. Thank you and please review.**

**~Teddypro**

**Response to Reviews**

**{Leaf Ranger} - **Awesome chapter. Naruto is freaking BA looking. Now we jsut need to see how the others react. Five bucks on sasuke either demanding Naruto teach him, give him his power, or fight him. XP; Overall, great chapter though. Can't wait to see the next one. Keep it up.

**_Answer_: ***Gives Leaf Ranger $5* Well, damn you.

**{Guest} - **Good chapter. I liked the sword name. Why don't you take some other anime's attacks and give it to naruto? Maybe the kamehameha wave or the getsuga tenshou?

**_Answer_: **No. No no no no and no. I am NOT going to give Naruto any attacks from other animes or mangas. I hate that idea on so many levels. I respect if you like it but I can't stand it.

**{Gold Testament} - **DAMN YOU I WANTED TO SEE THE REUNION AND SASUKE LEARNING THAT NARUTO IS TECHNICALLY HIS ANCESTOR! I was hoping to see that reaction as the cliffhanger. I'm sorry about yelling it's just you could've had the meeting done this chapter and cut off right after Sasuke's reaction to learning Naruto is the Rikudo Sennin.

**_Answer_: ***Deadpans* Quiet. Anyway, I will have the whole full heritage explanation done next chapter and I do believe that will be amusing. And his reaction is like the others shock and awe and disbelief. Though the proof is right there in front of them all.

**{DivergenceMagic} - **Nice chapter with Naruto getting ready to reveal his status as the rikodou sennin reincarnate and how he actually looks like the rikudo sennin. I liked how you actually made Naruto strong before revealing himself as that is what he would do if he was reincarnated because people would move to eliminate him if he had the rinnegan. With that said, I hope you some unique powerful jutsu that only the sage knew how to use. I had read another really bad fanfic that wasn't continued where Naruto merged with the sage and gained his abilties. My first qualm with the story was how weak and pathetic Naruto was compared to the current ninja. In that fanfic, he fought Kisame and Itachi who were constantly surprising him and even winning against him and all he used was shinra tensei. I wouldn't have a problem with him being surprised as new jutsus have been created since his death but he was seriously too weak to be called the god of shinobi or the one that founded the whole ninjutsu sect even when fighting against s-ranked shinobi. After all, he fought the Jubi who was a force of nature and had a lot of chakra. He would have invented jutsus to at least hold off the Jubi until he got a chance to seal it into himself and it isn't a stretch to say he could do a lot more than just what Nagato could do. After all, he was the one who sealed the Jubi's body and created the world's moon on his death bed. Not only that, but we hear about his creation of all living things jutsu which make his fantasy into reality which means he could imagine his enemy out of existance. My point is that while modern day ninja have advanced, that doesn't mean the Rikodou Sennin is going to be outdated or even inferior to modern day ninja. After all, the Senju and Uchiha clan got their powerful traits from him like his superior body and powerful eyes. With that said, are you going to make his six tomoe necklace do something. One of my favorite aspects in stories where the sage tools are mentioned is that there are the 5 tools the gold and silver brother have added in with the monk staff and necklace. The necklace was in Nightfall and another fanfic and it gave the six unique paths better abilities like the gravity path jutsu being stronger, the preta path absorbing even faster and chakra absorbed by the users skin, etc... While the staff could improve his 5 base elements even further. Try to keep the OC down to as little as possible as I don't really want them to take over the story and truthfully I would lose track of who they are. While the pairing with Hinata isn't my favorite, I'm really reading this for the reincarnation of the sage being Naruto as those stories are rare. Good job on the constant updates.

**_Answer_:** *Blinks, rubs eyes, then blinks again* Holy crap that's a lot of text. Anyway, let's see, thank you. I have indeed read that fanfiction. Yes, the weakness of that character did kill it some for me but what really killed it was the femItachi relationship and the fact the Naruto starts to act a lot more like the Sage than himself after the fusion. He will be getting some original abilities, yes, and the six magatama necklace. Well, yes, it has a special ability but it's a surprise as will be its backstory. And yeah, I am pissed off at how few Naruto = Rikudo Reincarnate fanfictions are out there. Well, I shouldn't say pissed off more than I am very annoyed. Anyway, I have finished your wall of text in but a few sentences. Awesome!


	8. The Paths We Take

**Disclaimer - I do not own Naruto.**

**Chapter 8 - The Paths We Take**

* * *

They had gotten settled with their rooms and had met in the mess hall of the Uzukage Tower. Sasuke had healed a bit and more bombshells were about to be dropped. Not that the Konoha-nin knew about the last part. . .

"So, Rikudo Sennin Reborn, huh?" Kakashi eye smiled. "I imagine there are few, if any, people on the planet who could match against you."

"Yeah, your technically the Founder of the Art we seem to have taken for granted it's so common," Tenten commented.

"Well," Naruto laughed and scratched the back of his head. "You'd be right about that. . . though being the Rikudo Sennin Reincarnated. . . it is a bit creepy when you think about it, you know?"

A few of them blinked and Tsunade asked, "How so?"

"Well. . .how should I put this. . ." Naruto thought a minute before saying, "Ah, screw it. My past life is the founder of the Uzumaki, Senju, and Uchiha clans."

They gaped at him as they processed the information. Not even Jiraiya had picked up on this earlier. Naruto nodded, "Yeah. Kind of messed up isn't it?"

"Wow," Jiraiya stared mouth wide-opened. "So that makes you the Shodai's, Nidaime's, Mito's, Tsunade's, Sasuke's, and your own mother's ancestor. That's. . . very disturbing."

"You're telling me."

"Gaki, I don't know if I could ever look at you the same way again," Tsunade commented. The others previously mentioned by Jiraiya could only nod. They didn't have any words to the fact that Naruto was their ancestor reincarnated. Then Kaosu brought something else up, "You know, you all are related anyway. Since the Senju, Uchiha, and Uzumaki clans all descend from lover boy's past life. You all are distant relatives anyway so it doesn't really matter if he's you ancestor or not."

"Great, that's all I needed to hear," Tsunade sarcastically commented rolling her eyes. "I'm related to the Uchiha brat. That is all I need to hear."

"Right back at you, hag," Sasuke commented just as sarcastically and this earned him a hard whack by Tsunade, effectively leaving him embedded in the far wall. Everyone sweat-dropped.

"Um, Hokage-sama," Tenten began. "You know he's still healing, right?"

"Yeah, so?"

"Um. . . just wondering."

"Damn right you were."

The reactions to this little exchange ranged from deadpans to snickers to sweat-drops. Tenten looked at Naruto, who was sitting with Hinata right next to him, with curiosity, "So, Sennin-san, what was your training with Kaosu like?"

"Call me Naruto. Sennin-san or anything like that is just something Kaosu and my paths call me to irritate me," Naruto glared slightly as said group of SS-ranked shinobi and Harbinger, who were all snickering at that. He returned his face to a smile before continuing, "As for my training, I didn't actually spend the whole two years training with just Kaosu. I trained with him and all my paths in different areas which they specialized. My Otou-san for Ninjutsu, chakra control with the Nidaime, and so on."

"You practiced chakra control?" Kakashi blinked in surprise. Naruto nodded, "Yeah, it took awhile to get used to due the sheer massive size of my chakra reserves due to my naturally large chakra reserves from being an Uzumaki, the boost gained from being the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki, and now the added bonus of the power and memories of my previous life. I did get the full hang of it after a number of months and have gotten my chakra control to almost the point of the Nidaime himself."

"Rikudo-sama, I don't think even you could get to my level of chakra control anytime soon," the Nidaime commented snickering. Naruto deadpanned, "You know, this is the reason they feel the need to be all formal and crap with me."

"We know and that's why we do it," Kaosu stated causing the paths to snicker. Naruto simply rolled his eyes, "Whatever, I'm still technically your boss."

"Yeah," Minato spoke grinning. "Because as we all know we get paid _soooo muuuch._"

The group laughed at that. It was nice to see a good air come back to the group. Tsunade and Jiraiya both looked at each other, "He's certainly grown, uh?"

"Yeah," Jiraiya chuckled. "Both mentally and physically."

Tsunade nodded.

"So, we all know about Naruto's story," Ino commented. "What about you, Kaosu?"

"What?" Kaosu's eyes-widened, a bit surprised by the sudden question. Naruto and the Paths tensed a bit. They knew the subject of Kaosu's past was a touchy subject for him.

"What's your story. How'd you become a Harbinger?"

The entire room was instantly silent as they waited for his answer. Kaosu bowed his head solemnly and the Konoha 12 looked on curiously. However, the instructors as well as Tsunade and Jiraiya could tell just how tense Naruto and his Paths were, and they began to get worried themselves. Kaosu took a deep breath, "Fine, I guess I'll give you all the short version."

Naruto and his paths' mouths dropped. He had never agreed to tell them much about his past at all. Kaosu sat down and was silent for a moment; Naruto, his paths, and the Konoha 12 all listened intently. Finally, he began, "I began my training for being Yami's Harbinger around. . . I'd say, er. . . six? Anyway, I was born and raised west of Tsuchi no Kuni so don't expect to be able to just go and find where I used to live. Religion and worshiping Kami and Yami was a big part from where I was from; so naturally being selected to be one of Yami's Harbingers was a very special honor and I was held in very high regard despite how dark the vocation is."

"If that's so then why did you come to Elemental Nations?" Kiba asked. "Was it to train Naruto?"

"Part of it was," Kaosu admitted. "But I was already in the Elemental Nations about nine years before I recieved the order. By that time I was near Kumo and since Yami likes to make my job harder he only told me the kid's location was in a country southwest of me."

Naruto and his friends all sweat-dropped at Kaosu's rant. But then Asuma brought up a good point, "Why were you in the Elemental Nations earlier then? Was it some sort of order from Yami?"

Kaosu shook is head, "No, it wasn't. Before then it was simply to leave my homeland. Something incredibly important was taken from me and the populace didn't even glance at it. I left soon after."

Kurenai looked at him, "What was taken from you?"

Kaosu was silent for a long while before he spoke, "My wife."

Their eyes widened, "Your wife? What happened to her?"

A long silence rose again before Kaosu could speak. They could tell he was holding back tears, "She. . . she was butchered. . . by my old sensei. The one who trained me to be a Harbinger."

They collectively gasped. Kaosu nodded sorrowfully, "Yes, he used the Kage no Hiso on me. A technique that summons ethereal chains with blades at the end. They are used to pull a person closer to the user or to chain him down. I assume you remember them, right Jiraiya-san?"

The Sennin nodded as the memory of his defeat entered his mind. "He saw my attachment to my family as a weakness and sought to remove that attachment. He almost completely succeeded until my rage overtook my body and beat him into the ground. I crippled him but didn't kill him. No person, civilian or military, stood by my decision. In fact, they backed my old sensei up. So I left with one of Harbinger who supported me."

They all nodded, recognizing that he had a hard life like so many of them had had. Shikamaru frowned, "Almost completely succeeded, Kaosu? What do you mean?"

They blinked and thought about those words as well. Then they looked at him as if begging for an answer. Kaosu, seeing he wasn't going to leave without giving an answer, sighed, "My daughter is still alive and I brought her to the Elemental Nations with me."

"WHAT?!" they shouted at him in unison.

"You never told us you had a daughter!" Naruto shouted at him. "Where is she?!"

Kaosu frowned, "Don't you have a girlfriend?"

Naruto grew red with embarrassment, "THAT'S NOT WHY I WANT TO KNOW!"

"She's training with the previous Harbinger whom I mentioned," Kaosu stated. "Yami ordered me to leave her to my friend to train as he needed me to still act as his Harbinger."

"Why didn't he let you train your daughter and your friend still work under him?" Tenten asked.

"Because he likes to screw me over," Kaosu stated bluntly. "I work for him but it doesn't mean he likes to make my life easy. Also, I've been a Harbinger longer and I'm more experienced. Anyway, can we please change the subject?"

They all nodded and stopped questioning him. It was a bit before they brought up another subject.

"So, Naruto," Kiba asked gaining the Reborn Sennin's attention. "I trust you are coming back to Konoha with us?"

There was a pause before he answered, "Temporarily, but. . . yes I will come back."

"Wait, temporarily? Why?" Kakashi asked stunned. There others were wide-eyed as well. Naruto sighed, "As much as I want to return to Konoha I can't. At least not permanently."

"B-but why, Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked desperately as a heavy saddened tore through her like a jagged knife. the mere thought of her boyfriend not being able to stay with her like she had hoped he would was almost too much to bear for her.

"It because of who I am now," Naruto answered. "I am the Rikudo Sennin. My past life proclaimed to his sons and to the biju that one would come who would bring peace to the world through love and kindness. That person is me, his reincarnation. I have a mission to complete as the Rikudo Sennin and as such being attached to a village would unfortunately make my job harder."

"How so?" Tsunade asked crossing her arms.

"Don't get me wrong, Tsunade-baa-chan, Konoha is still my home. However, think about it. To bring peace I must be able to travel around trying to bring the nations closer together. Gaining allies throughout the Elemental Nations will also gain me a lot of enemies and if they knew me to be an active Konoha-nin, what do you think their reaction would be?"

Jiraiya nodded in understanding, "To attack us."

"Right."

"But they must know that you were a Konoha-nin to begin with!" Hinata tried to point out. Naruto shook his head, "Yeah, but what are they more likely to respond to? Would it be an active nin they knew was loyal to Konoha or a shinobi supposedly kidnapped by some unknown entity who holds no direct affiliation with any village?"

Hinata deflated as her face fell. Naruto responded by hugging her, "Believe me, Hinata, I do want to return. Now is just not the time."

"I-I understand, Naruto-kun," Hinata said as tears fell from her eyes. She looked up at him and gave him a quick kiss.

"Ack, that mushy stuff between you two is getting on my nerves," Sakura blanched mockingly. Everyone glared at her.

"Damn, and I thought being a mood killer was my job," Kaosu muttered to himself.

"Shut up, Sakura," Kiba spoke angrily. "You shouldn't be talking considering how 'mushy' you've been trying to get with Sasuke for years."

"That's different!" Sakura retorted. "He's a fricking _demon_!"

A sudden force of strong killer intent sent Sakura to her knees. She managed to look up to see an enraged Six Paths before her. Kushina snarled, "Don't you dare call my son a demon."

"That'd make myself and Kushina one as well," Mito pointed out just as angrily. "We were both Jinchuurikis of the Kyuubi before Naruto was."

The others blinked in surprise. '_Kyuubi had been part of Konoha that long?_' was the general thought. Naruto raised his hand, "Stop. She's had enough."

The killer intent slowly eased, allowing Sakura to stand. However, now she was terrified of the paths and immediately moved a far distance from them.

"Anyway, you're coming back to Konoha, aren't you?" Jiraiya asked hope to regain a lost subject while diverting attention to the previous scene. "Even though it's temporary, why would you do that? Isn't that sort of defeating the purpose you just set?"

Naruto shook my head, "It's for three reasons. One: it is to get my heritage that was kept from me. Two: it is to sign my resignation from service as a Konoha-nin. And three: it is to clean out all the rats within Konoha itself and to reignite the Will of Fire within the village."

He paused a moment, letting his words sink in.

"After that, myself and my paths will join me on a journey around the Elemental Nations, seeking to ally with anyone we can. Kaosu will act as a sort of scout, giving us intel on the areas we will come across. Also, we'll have Jiraiya's spy network keeping us up-to-date on any activities that happen under the radar or simply out of our range."

Another pause.

"Please try to understand. I love Konoha. It is my home. But right now, I have to act as a peace-bringer for the Elemental Nations and I simply can't do it while attached to any one village. I'm sorry."

"Don't be, gaki, we understand," Jiraiya spoke up. "You have big shoes to fill and high expectations to live up to. You've got to do what you've got to do."

Naruto nodded smiling. Tsunade then spoke up, "You know, gaki, that's the thinking of a kage right there. You put the mission of your position before yourself. If you didn't have this job as the Rikudo Sennin's peace-bringer I might just have let you take over as Hokage sometime soon."

Naruto laughed, "Anything to get out of the Great Kage Paperwork Curse, eh baa-chan?"

They all laughed at Tsunade's expense. She frowned, "You think it's funny, gaki?! I'd rather have a challenge of sadism with Ibiki than be stuck doing that damned paperwork!"

"Relax, Tsunade-chan," her grandfather laughed. "We've all had to do it and we've all survived."

"Yeah," Minato laughed as well. "And it was a damn bitch to all of us, too!"

The four previous Hokage's all shared a laugh. They failed to noticed Naruto's smirk, however, "Have you ever considered using shadow clones?"

Immediately the four Hokage's stopped laughing and all of the kages looked at Naruto wide-eyed, "W-what?"

"Shadow clones," Naruto repeated. "It could make the paperwork so much easier you know."

The five Hokages gaped at him. Why the hell had none of them thought of that? Simultaneously, all five face-palmed themselves.

"Why on earth didn't we think of that?" Minato asked rhetorically.

"I'm beginning to doubt my own mind," Hiruzen, the Professor, stated. The others present laughed at their expense.

"So," Jiraiya said gaining their attention again. "When are we leaving?"

"Tomorrow," Naruto answered. "You only came here to get me correct?"

Jiraiya nodded. That was when Kaosu spoke up, "Well, one last thing before we go off to do whatever. Myself and the Paths all made a bet on how many of you would fainted. Which was 9 or you. Since no on picked nine we've all officially lost. So, because of this, we all have to sing you a song."

The Paths all sighed. Kaosu followed suit, "Ready? 1. . . 2. . . 3!"

* * *

The following morning the Konoha-nin and those of Naruto's groups met at the front gate. They were all packed and ready to go. Kaosu had already bid his farewell at the Uzukage Tower. He was staying behind to 'hold down the fort' as he put it. Naruto's nodded to his friends, "I trust we're ready to go?"

"Yes, we're ready, Rikudo-sama," Jiraiya answered with a mock salute. Naruto groaned and shook his head, "How many times do I have to say 'Don't be formal like that with me'?"

"Might as well get used to it, gaki," Tsunade grinned. "It's never going to change due to who you are now."

Naruto sighed as a few laughs escaped from his friends.

"So, Naruto," Kiba began to ask as Naruto looked at him. "Ready to go home?"

Naruto smiled, "Let's go."

Naruto took to the trees. His paths and his comrades were right behind him.

* * *

Danzo waited on the outskirts of Konoha waiting for the other party in the meeting that was about to take place. On either side of him were two ROOT ninja. He stood there under the cover of darkness away from Konoha sensors. It had been about five days since Tsunade and the Konoha 12 left Konoha to find the demon brat. His spy amongst the Konoha 12 had sent him a message that was vital to both him and his accomplice and it wasn't long before his 'ally' appeared. The snake-eyed, paled Sennin known as Orochimaru appeared in front of Danzo. Kabuto was by his side.

"I trust you have a good reason for calling me out here?" Orochimaru grumbled. He and Danzo had conspired to take over Konoha and eventually Hi no Kuni since a year after the Kyuubi attack. Danzo had managed to convince Orochimaru through secret meetings not to destroy Konoha, but to eventually allow him to become Hokage. Once he held that position, he would work with the newly founded Sound to overthrow Orochimaru, who would then declare himself the Fire Daimyo.

Danzo wanted Konoha to become the strongest and to be the Hokage went it was declared unstoppable no matter how he did it.

Orochimaru wanted power and authority as well as the destruction of the Will of Fire.

This goal fulfilled both of their foul goals.

However, the message sent by his ROOT ninja within the Konoha 12 called for immediate planning. Danzo nodded, "I have received a message from my spy within the Konoha 12 who went to go recover the demon brat."

"Oh," Orochimaru looked at Danzo gaining some interest.

"Yes," Danzo nodded. "As you know the brat has been training with the Harbinger of Yami."

"A man claiming to be the Harbinger of Yami you mean," Kabuto pointed out.

"He's not claiming anything," Danzo said with a tone a seriousness. "Part of the message said that Jiraiya encountered the man named Mahotsukai Kaosu and apparently he defeated Jiraiya rather easily even though the fool was in Sage Mode."

Orochimaru's eyes widened. He beat Jiraiya in Sage Mode? Even he would have trouble accomplishing that and it wasn't a guaranteed victory either. "Is that so?"

"Yes, but that is not the most derailing part of the message sent to me."

"Oh?"

"Yes, I assume you know of the Rikudo Sennin myth?"

Orochimaru raised an eyebrow, "Yes I have. The myth involving the Founder of Ninjutsu and the man who originally held my former sensei's title."

"Yes, but recent events have proved it far from myth."

"What?" Orochimaru's voice rose. "What do you mean?"

"The demon brat, Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto, is the Rikudo Sennin's reincarnation and has the Sennin's mighty dojutsu: the Rinnegan."

"WHAT?!" Orochimaru shouted.

"That's not all."

"HOW COULD THAT POSSIBLY NOT BE ALL?!"

"Apparently, the Rinnegan gives the person the ability to control six bodies to control six different abilities of the Rinnegan through metal piercings in their bodies," Orochimaru's eyes widened. He had seen that before when he was part of the Akatsuki. . . when he had met Pein.

"_So it was the Rinnegan he had. . ._" Orochimaru thought. "What of these. . . bodies. . . ?"

"Due to something the Harbinger did, the paths have all the memories and personalities of their living life. And these paths are the previous four Hokages and the previous two Kyuubi Jinchuuriki."

Orochimaru was, for once, speechless. This was a HUGE monkey wrench thrown into the gears of war set turning by both him and Danzo. The Jinchuuriki brat, the boy who was considered the deadlast, was now, in essence, the strongest and most powerful shinobi in the Elemental Nations. Orochimaru finally managed to break out of his stunned state and frowned, "So, what is the boy's plan? Do we know?"

"He is currently returning to Konoha with his _Paths_ as he calls them to file resignation papers from the Konoha Shinobi Force and to recieve his inheritance as the Fourth Hokage's son and as the son of the Uzumaki Matriarch."

"Resignation?" Orochimaru's eyes widened in interest and surprised. He knew the boy's patriotism for Konoha was sky high and the fact that he had continuously shouted he was going to be Hokage was only to prove that point. The idea that'd he'd resign from the Konoha Shinobi Force, and consequently ending his chances to be Hokage, was very surprising indeed. "I wonder why the boy would do that?"

"Apparently," Danzo answered with some seriousness. "He sees his position as the Rikudo Sennin Reborn as him being the one who shall bring forth 'peace and order' and, due to this, he can't be bound to solely one country because it would cause him to lose credibility."

Orochimaru nodded in understanding, "They would see him as trying to benefit Konoha instead of everyone."

"Precisely."

"So if the boy is leaving Konoha then how is he a threat?"

"Two reasons," Danzo stated. "One is that he still says he considers Konoha is home; so attacking Konoha will gain his attention. And two is that he's also coming to Konoha to 'weed the rats out of the council'.

Orochimaru frowned, "He's going to take away the control the Civilians have gained over Konoha."

"Yes, and with the first four Hokage's behind him I won't be able to stop them without bringing suspicion upon myself."

"Then don't," Danzo's eyes widened, but before he could argue Orochimaru continued. "You can't possibly hope to stand a chance against the reincarnation of the Founder of Ninjutsu especially when he has the first four Hokages and the first two Kyuubi Jinchuuriki as his _Paths_ as you say. Numerous Sharingans or not, he has the Rinnegan, the Eyes of God. Not to mention if they find out about the Shodai's DNA, the Shodai himself will likely rip you apart. And you are of no use to mine nor your own goals dead. We will figure out how to deal with the Rikudo Sennin at a later date. Once he _liberates_ Konoha, he will leave, which will leave you open to reestablish yourself. While it's no longer possible to regain major control over Shinobi systems in Konoha due to the chance they might contact the brat, it still leaves other options open. . . and in other areas."

"You mean the rest of the country, "Danzo said catching on. "Turning the civilians across Hi no Kuni against the Godaime and her loyal shinobi. Have them cause such an uproar to force the Daimyo's hand."

"Exactly."

"This is a very dangerous game, Orochimaru. If the Daimyo catches wind of any of this, myself and my ROOT Shinobi will be finished."

Orochimaru turned to leave with Kabuto. He smirked, "Then I suggest you don't get caught."

With that, he vanished into the trees. Danzo turned away and took off back towards Konoha. His ROOT-nin and followed him.

He had work to do.

* * *

Kaosu sat cross-legged in his room within Uzushiogakure. Naruto, his Paths, and the Konoha-nin had left about a day ago and now the sun was setting. He had stayed behind to watch Uzushio but he had other reasons.

More spiritual reasons.

Slowly, he took a deep breath as he faded into his mindscape. . .

* * *

**Kaosu's Mindscape**

Kaosu's mindscape was filled with a shadowy, black air that was not too dissimilar from his Yami no Shio technique. He sat there seemingly floating in midair for about half a minute before he heard a dark whispering. . .

"_Your task with the boy is over my Harbinger. . ._" a cold, steely voice rasped in a dark whisper in his ear. "_It's time to leave. . ._"

"I cannot, Yami-dono," Kaosu answered. He instantly could feel the pressure of the deity's anger attempting to crush him. He slowly took in a deep breath. "My lord, I swore to Naruto I would help him in his journey to. . ."

"_THAT is not your place, mortal_" the voice of the god rose in anger. "_You are my servant and you will obey_ ME."

"It's a matter of honor-" Kaosu began to say but was interrupted by his lord's terrible fury. "_YOU ARE MY HARBINGER! YOU HAVE NO HONOR! YOU HAVE NO MERCY! YOU HAVE NO CHOICE IN THE MATTER! YOU BELONG TO ME!_"

"Yami-dono," Kaosu said calmly. "I cannot. I swore to him that I would."

With Yami's rage still trying to pressure into the ground, Kaosu heard the dark god start to laughed, "_Fool, this is exactly what led your wife to her end. You forget you place and you gain emotions. It will lead to your downfall. . . or the downfall of someone else. . ._"

Now Kaosu's anger rose, "Don't you even dare attempt harm my daughter!"

"_DON'T DARE?! DON'T DARE! I DARE! IF YOU CONTINUE DOWN THIS PATH YOUR DAUGHTER WILL SUFFER!_"

Kaosu glared into the darkness and then let out a breath, "My lord, if any harm comes of my daughter, god or not, I _will _bring you pain. My master or not, I have lost too much in this world to care about that foolish belief anymore."

Kaosu felt the pressure of rage intensify. Calmly, he looked forward, "I will leave. . . but only after Naruto meets with the other Rinnegan user: Nagato."

There was a moment of silence and Kaosu could feel the god's rage subside slightly, "_Very well, boy_. _I will let you play as the Rikudo Sennin's pet. However, once he has met this. . . Nagato. . . I expect you to leave so that I can make you receive the mentality a Harbinger is supposed to have. If you do not leave, I will repeat what you master did to your wife with your daughter. And I will make you watch._"

Kaosu clenched his fists in anger but nodded nonetheless. "Very well, Yami-_dono_."

* * *

Kaosu left his mindscape and sighed, "Sorry, kid. I guess I won't be enjoying the coming of peace with you and yours after all. . ."

* * *

**Sorry it took me so long, guys. School started back up so I won't be able to get chapters out as often. I'll try to get them out as soon as I can, however. Anyway, the poll results so far are as follows:**

**Large Sakura Bashing - 12**

**Small Sakura Bashing - 4**

**Change for the Better - 3**

**Jealous of Hinata -3**

**. . . wow, you guys really hate Sakura don't you? Well, I made the decision to follow the one voted for the most, but I'll keep it up for about a couple more chapters before it's finalized. Also, for the embarrassing song Kaosu and the Paths did, well, I decided to make you wait like the evil man that I am and put it in an omake for next chapter. ;-)**

**Anyway, thank you for reading and please review!**

**~Teddypro**

**Response to Reviews**

**{NaruHinafan86} - **Shouldnt naruto be able to summon the five sacred treasures since in this story they are his and since hashirama tobirama have access to naruto's memories they shouldve ask if being hokage is foolish and will naruto be able to use tsukiyomi ameterasu susanoo and kamui

**_Answer_: **Not necessarily, besides it will make for an interesting conversation, eh? And where does it say they have access to Naruto's memories? I seem to recall they have access to whatever he sees or hears. Chapter 2 shows this.

**{Guest} - **Wait, how did you count the number of people who fainted? Hinata and Tenten fainted but apparently woke up really quickly and Lee fainted twice (at one time)? How confusing..

**_Answer_: **One of the rules, people fainting more than once doesn't count and people who faint can actually wake up within a minute or two. So, it works. Stop being so damn nit picky.

**{Peter Kim} - **This is the last time,I'm going to read this fic since you made it pro sasuke and I hate and loathe Sasuke,your plot is good but you made this fic into Naruto helping and allying himself with Konoha which is done too much. I hope you do well with your other fic. Farewell.

**_Answer_: **Fine. That's your call. A stupid reason to stop reading a fanfiction but I can't stop you. But seriously, it's called a 'Peace' challenge for a reason. And I did it ever occur to you that I may no loath the idea of Sasuke's redemption. I can lean either way personally, but again, it's your call though, again, I think it's a very stupid way to view fanfiction.

**{Guest} - **Nice! I like how in the other chapter you managed to prove Jiraiya's worth. Even though he was fighting a servent of a god, he was still able to inflict damage.

**_Answer_: **Yeah, I wanted to make him powerful but still beatable. I haven't decided his full potential but I'm guessing it's going to be around Pein's/Nagato's level.


	9. Rikudo Sennin v Civilian Council

**Disclaimer - I do not own Naruto.**

**Chapter 9 - Rikudo Sennin v. Civilian Council**

* * *

"We are approaching Konoha," Jiraiya stated smirking. "We'll be there in about ten minutes."

"And it's almost midnight," Naruto pointed out. "The fewer people who know about me before the announcement the better."

"You just want to see those people's reactions, don't you Naruto-kun?" Hinata giggled as her boyfriend smirked, "That's part of it."

"Troublesome," Shikamaru grunted but smirked. Naruto may have matured quite a bit but he was still the mischievous knucklehead they all knew.

"The Daimyo's going to be arriving in Konoha in about two days time, right?" Ino asked.

"Yes, that is correct," Neji answered and then smirked as he thought back. "His reaction at the revelations, however, were very funny I must admit."

"No different from our own reactions though," Tsunade stated embarrassing the Hyuuga prodigy.

"Still, the reaction of the Daimyo to the Rikudo Sennin's return was most entertaining as well as other more. . . _interesting_ parts of the discussion. . ."

* * *

_**Flashback**_

_**Two days ago. . .**_

_"Naruto-kun," Hinata asked. "Why are we stopping?"_

_"We're making a bit of a detour," Asuma answered. From the stares of confusion he was getting, he decided to elaborate. "I was asked by Naruto to see if we could get an audience with the Daimyo. Given my connection with the Twelve Guardians, we assumed we could get in to speak with him."_

_"Why would we need to speak with the Daimyo?" Tsunade asked raising her eyebrow._

_"Because I intend on revealing to him who I am and what my duty is," Naruto answered in a serious tone. "His support will help us with the 'cleaning' of Konoha."  
_

_"Well, that does make sense," Jiraiya commented putting his hand to his chin. "Especially when he figures out who you are. That'll certainly get him onto our side."_

_"Well then, let's not waste time," Asuma stated._

* * *

_Soon, they were at the Palace of the Daimyo. How did they get in? Well, to be fair only Jiraiya, Tsunade, Asuma, Naruto, and his paths got in, but walking up to the Daimyo's palace with two of the Sennin, one of them being the Hokage, a boy who looks like the Yondaime, and the four past hokages does tend to stun a lot of people into speechlessness. They were halted at the gates while one of the Twelve Guardians went to the Daimyo to inform them of their arrival and soon they were ushered in. The Daimyo, needless to say, was speechless at who he saw before him._

_"Well, this is a surprise," the Daimyo said with wide eyes. You could tell he was trying to keep calm but the sight before him was obviously too much. "When they told me that the four past hokages were here I thought they were pulling a terrible joke."_

_They all laughed and Hashirama spoke, "No, Daimyo-sama, we are indeed the past hokages and these fine red-headed women are the wives of two of us: Mito is mine as I'm sure you know and Kushina is the Yondaime's."_

_"I was well aware of that last one," the Daimyo smiled. "Well, Yondaime, would you mind explaining what is happening before my eyes?"_

_"Certainly, Daimyo-sama," Minato smiles. "First allow me to introduce mine and Kushina's son, Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto."_

_Naruto bowed, "Pleasure to meet you, Daimyo-sama."_

_The Daimyo blinked then smiled, "Likewise, Naruto-san."_

_"Anyway, the reason why we are here, Daimyo-sama, is because of him."_

_"How so?" Daimyo looked at him curiously._

_"His eyes are a dojutsu. Perhaps you've heard of it," Minato paused gaining the Daimyo's anticipation and curiosity. "The Rinnegan."_

_The Daimyo's eyes widened," The eyes of the Rikudo Sennin? They're real? How is this possible?"_

_"Allow me to explain. . ."_

_After the explanation, the Daimyo leaned back in his chair amazed and stunned by what he had learned. He then smiled, "So then, Rikudo-sama, what is it you need of me?"_

_"We need some help cleaning out the corruption in Konohagakure."_

_The Daimyo blinked in surprise, "Konoha's corruption?"_

_"Yes," Hiruzen sighed. "Apparently, despite your efforts to fix Konoha after young Naruto's 'kidnapping', the Civilian Council has slowly been stealing more and more power from the Hokage and Shinobi Council. With no evidence to back our accusations, they were unable to fight back."_

_The Daimyo put his hand to his chin in thought; a frown gracing his features, "You wish for me to come to Konoha to help you clean up this mess of Konoha's making?"_

_Naruto stepped forward, "Daimyo-sama, we know you don't really have any form of obligation to aid us in this endeavour, however, I ask you, as the Reincarnation of the Rikudo Sennin himself, to please help us cleanse Konoha of the filth that seeks to take control through their pride and greed."  
_

_Naruto's companion's eyes widened in surprise._

_"When did Naruto get so mature?" Tsunade thought, caught off-guard by the knucklehead's mature request._

_"Guess I can't call him a gaki anymore," Jiraiya thought and smiled, shaking off his surprise. The Daimyo smiled, "Well then, Rikudo-sama, I will accept your request. Of course, I need to teach the Civilian Council a lesson what happens when they deny my will. I warned them before of their actions but they still continued on with their foolish mistakes. No more. Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto, the Rikudo Sennin, I shall go to Konoha. I shall be there about a day after you yourself should arrive. Is that acceptable?"_

_"Hai, Daimyo-sama," Naruto bowed. "I don't plan on revealing myself until that time if it's all the same with you."_

_"Of course. I shall see you again in Konoha, Rikudo-sama."_

_Naruto nodded and turned to leave with the others before the Daimyo spoke up, "Rikudo-sama. . ."_

_Naruto turned back to the Daimyo curious as to what the Feudal Lord wanted, "I must ask about your supposed kidnapper. I have to admit the report about him disturbed me a little. Tell me a bit about him."_

_Naruto blinked before looking at his paths. They simply shrugged. Jiraiya and Tsunade looked on curiously; they too were interested in his opinion of his mentor._

_"Well, his name is Mahotsukai Kaosu, the Harbinger of Yami."_

_"The God of Darkness?"_

_"Yep, he is, dattebayo."_

_"And you trust him?"_

_"Of course, he's a tough mentor but he's very compassionate despite serving such a dark being."_

_"Hmm, I see. Well, let me inform you of this then, young Sennin," the Daimyo began. "My great-grandfather happened to have an encounter at some point while with a shinobi before Hashirama and Madara founded Konohagakure. The man claimed to be a Harbinger of Yami as well, but he was not compassionate. He was dark, emotionless, and merciless. He killed the shinobi guard that my great-grandfather had because he apparently got in the way of a mission he was on. My great-grandfather barely managed to get away with his life."_

_"Why are you telling us this?" Hashirama asked, seemingly speaking for all present. "Kaosu hasn't done anything dastardly, at least not intentionally. He's just doing his job."_

_"Exactly. His ultimate loyalty is to the God of Darkness, Yami. I know you trust him, young Sennin, but, for the sake of your mission and your friends, I'd be wary of him. The more I think about this the more I feel something is amiss."_

_Naruto nodded, "I understand, Daimyo-sama. I will always be cautious."_

_"Very well then, Rikudo-sama, I shall see you in a couple of days. Farewell."_

* * *

"So, basically he said to beware Kaosu?" Neji asked. "How does that make sense? All he's done is help us."

"Even so, the Daimyo had a point," Kakashi spoke up. "Kaosu, despite his friendly nature, is ultimately loyal to the God of Darkness whom, as we may guess, is probably not the friendliest, most-loving guy in the world. Yes, he's a friend but we don't know what Yami's motives are in all this, and we know Kaosu will ultimately have to follow his orders. We should be at least wary of what's going on with him."

"I think Kakashi's right," Naruto stated, surprising them. "When he first introduced himself, I had asked him why Yami would want to help me and from what he said, it sounds to me like Yami was forced into sending Kaosu to help me by Kami herself. I have this feeling that as soon as Kaosu's task is done, Yami is going to try something since he obviously wasn't too enthusiastic about helping me."

"I hope Kaosu doesn't become an enemy," Tenten said.

"Agreed," Jiraiya nodded. "He's powerful and he really hasn't given us a reason to be enemies."

Shikamaru huffed, "Troublesome."

Everyone gave him a blank stare and Tsunade sighed, "Come on. Let's go home."

* * *

Kaosu walked quietly through the forest a good ways from Uzushiogakure. He had to see someone; someone who was very important in his life. His mind thought back to the conversation he had had with his. . . _master_. The longer he was that god's harbinger, Kaosu thought, the more and more he regretted it.

"_Then again_," Kaosu thought. "_I would have never met my. . . wife, nor would I have met lover bo-. . . I mean, Naruto, either._"

After some time, he managed to reach an old, seemingly-abandoned shrine. The key word there being 'seemingly'.

"Otou-san!" he heard a feminine voice shout. Kaosu turned to see a young girl with white hair and Kaosu's blue, black-inverted eyes. She was only about twelve or thirteen years old. Her hair was long, reaching mid-back, and she had a very slim and small build even for her age. Kaosu smiled and bent down to her, "How are you Shinami? I trust you've been good for Tamashi-san?"

"She has," came another voice. Kaosu looked up to see a face very familiar to him. It was young man that seemed slightly younger than Kaosu himself. He had short black hair and the black, inverted eyes that Kaosu had, save that they were green instead of blue. He had similar wear as Kaosu himself save it wasn't as. . . noble.

"That's good to hear."

The young girl looked up at her father, "Tamashi-sensei has been teaching me a lot, otou-san! I've practiced okaa-san's Senaru Majutsu and your Kage Majutsu, too!"

"I can imagine you're getting pretty good at it as well, Shinami," Kaosu smiled. Shortly, after his wife's death he had found that his daughter had a strange, natural instinct for the use of his wife's Senaru Majutsu, the techniques that were given to a Harbinger of Kami. In basic terms, Senaru Majutsu and Kage Majutsu were yin and yang.

The strange thing was that, normally, one needed to become a Harbinger before being able to use either of these arts and it was impossible to learn both, yet his daughter was succeeding at such. Then again, a Harbinger of Kami and a Harbinger of Yami had never married nor had there ever been a record of any Harbinger having a child before. So for all he knew maybe this was the reason: being able to use these styles without being bound to either Kami or Yami.

And that was a power to be feared.

"She has definitely improved a great deal. Give her a year or so and she might be able to use Yami no Bakuha."

"Really? Well. . . that is phenomenal."

There was a short silence before Kaosu sighed, "Tamashi. . . I need to speak with you alone. . ."

Tamashi's eyes widened a bit as he nodded, "Hai, sensei."

". . . Otou-san. . .?"

"Shinami, go inside. I must speak with your sensei alone."

Shinami nodded sadly, "Hai, otou-san."

She walked back inside of the shrine and Kaosu turned to his former student. By the saddened and serious look his sensei was giving him, Tamashi could tell something was wrong. . .

. . . and that it concerned Shinami. . .

"Tamashi," Kaosu began, taking a deep breath. "I fear for my daughter."

"Why?" Tamashi asked, slightly angered. He cared for Shinami; she was like the little sister he never had. "What's wrong?"

Kaosu turned away slightly, "I trust you know of my previous mission?"

Tamashi blinked, "You mean training the Rikudo Sennin Tensei? Yeah, I remember you talking about it a couple of years ago. Wasn't it something that Kami forced Yami to do? Something about 'working from the shadows done by those of the shadows'? . . . Wait, what do you mean by 'previous' mission?"

"Unofficially, the mission is over."

"Unofficially?"

"I promised the kid that I'd help him in his quest to bring peace and order."

"And that's a problem how?"

"Yami ordered me to leave."

"You argued against Yami?! Are you mad?!"

"Quiet! I don't want her to know. . ."

"But, sensei-."

"Tamashi, I've got until the Sennin meets another Rinnegan user by the name of Nagato, then I fear Yami's going to corrupt my mind."

"What. . .? Kaosu-sensei, how could you agree to this?!"

Kaosu didn't speak but instead turned fully away. Tamashi instantly understood why, "He threatened Shinami. . . didn't he?"

Kaosu slowly nodded. Tamashi sighed, "What is it you wish me to do?"

"Protect her. . . from me."

Tamashi's eyes widened, "You think he might use you to get rid of her."

"I have a hunch. . ."

"Sensei, you know if it came down to it there's no way I could beat you-"

"I know. . . just, please keep her safe. I'm terrified for her safety. I can't lose anyone else. . ."

"I know we can't refuse Yami but. . .why?"

"If I didn't agree to it he would've just taken me over right then and there."

Tamashi sighed, "I understand, sensei. Your will shall be done."

There was a brief silence before Tamashi spoke again, "So you want to stay for awhile? I'm sure Shinami would love to learn from you again."

Kaosu chuckled, "Of that, I have no doubt of that."

* * *

"Wow, this place sure doesn't change much now does it?" Hashirama commented when they reached Konoha. Tobirama and Mito nodded in agreement. Tsunade smiled, "You mean besides the extra heads on the Hokage Monument?"

"Yes, besides that."

Naruto looked at the others at nodded, "Okay, remember, myself and my paths are not supposed to reveal ourselves until the Council Meeting tomorrow. So, does anybody know a place we can stay?"

"You can stay at the Sarutobi estate," Asuma said, speaking up. "It's large enough for all seven of you."

"Thank you, my son," Hiruzen smiled. Asuma returned it. Naruto smiled towards everyone else, "Okay, I'll see you all later. See you at the Council Meeting tomorrow, baa-chan."

With that, Naruto vanished shortly followed by his paths. Tsunade sighed and Jiraiya snickered, "I bet your own grandparents won't stop teasing you about that now."

"Shut up, Ero-sennin."

"Hey!"

Everyone laughed at the scene. Tsunade then turned to the others, "You are all dismissed. Rest well. It's going to be a long couple of days."

After that, they each began to disperse each thinking their own thoughts on the situation.

"_Well, gaki, tomorrow you throw the council through the ringer_," Tsunade then smirked. "_You, me, and the Daimyo are going to have so much fun ripping them a new one_."

"_I can't wait to see the Shinobi and the Civilian Council's reactions to the return of the Rikudo Sennin_," Jiraiya chuckled to himself. "_It's going to be hilarious!_"

"_Naruto-kun_," Hinata thought with determination. "_Even though you have to leave, I understand. You have to be the Rikudo Sennin, not Konoha's #1 Knuckle-headed Shinobi. Even so, I will always wait for you here, even for eternity if I have to._"

"_Dobe_," Sasuke grunted annoyed. "_I admit, you've far surpassed me. Thinking about what you said has thrown me through a tornado of emotional conflict. I think I'm finally starting to understand what you are talking about. . ._"

"_Damn gaki!_" Sakura swore to herself. "_Thinks he's better than Sasuke. I bet Sasuke could beat that dobe if he was really trying. Rikudo Sennin my ass!_"

"Troublesome," Shikamaru muttered but smirked nonetheless. "_Naruto is going to raise hell in the council tomorrow with the Daimyo and the Hokage. I might just get up earlier to witness that._"

"_Naruto certainly has changed_," Tenten thought back to how Naruto currently looked as the Sennin. "_I wonder if he'll let me see that sword of his._"

"_For someone who denies destiny_," Neji smirked. "_You sure have accepted it very well. Nevertheless, you are still the Naruto we all know._"

"_Well, Naruto, good luck_," Kakashi thought. "_You sure have made me proud_."

With that, everyone went home ready for the great changes coming the following day.

* * *

"Ah, it feels good to be back in my own house," Hiruzen commented when they reached the Sarutobi estate.

"Can't say I can share the same feeling as you jiji-san," Naruto shrugged.

"Can't exactly blame you, my boy," the Sandaime sighed sadly. A saddened exhale breathed from the other paths at that.

"Hey!" came a voice. A voice Naruto and Hiruzen recognized instantly. "Who are-"

The voice stopped dead as the seven of them turned around. It was young Konohamaru who was frozen stiff at whom he was facing. "Naruto-nii? Jiji-san?"

"Hello, Konohamaru," Hiruzen greeted his grandson with a smile.

"JIJI-SAN!" Konohamaru shouted joyful as he embraced his grandfather. The other paths smiled happily at the reunion. "Bu-but how is it possible? Naruto-nii, what happened? Is this some kind of genjutsu?"

"Nope," Naruto answered. "This is all real! And in order to know how, you must promise not to tell anybody until we announce it ourselves."

"I promise, Naruto-nii!"

"You know the old story of the Rikudo Sennin?"

"Yeah, who doesn't?"

"I am the Sennin's Reincarnation."

"What? Really?"

"Yep, and Jiji and the other hokages and my clansmen are my paths: six people who act as extensions of myself."

Konohamaru could only gape. "By the way, the other man with yellow hair is my otou-san, Namikaze Minato, who you may know as the Yondaime."

"Your father's the Yondaime?"

"Yep, nice to meet you," Minato said to the boy. "I'm Minato and you are?"

"I am Sarutobi Konohamaru, grandson to the Sandaime, and I'm going to be Hokage!"

"Gee, I wonder who that sounds like," Mito giggled.

"I didn't know we had a Naruto clone in the Sarutobi clan, dattebane. Why didn't you tell us Hiruzen-san?"

Naruto and Konohamaru scratched the backs of their heads sheepishly while Hiruzen chuckled nervously. Naruto then looked at the young Sarutobi and told him, "Now, let us rest, Konohamaru. Tomorrow's a busy day for us so we need our rest."

"Will you came eat with me at Ichiraku's tomorrow after you're done?"

"Ha! You know full well I'd never turn down a good bowl of ramen!"

"Or ten," Tobirama muttered.

"No wonder that ramen joint likes you so much," his brother chuckled. The others joined in.

"Okay, Naruto-nii. See you tomorrow! Have fun doing that business of your's!"

"Don't worry. We will."

* * *

It was the following day, and Naruto and his Six Paths were waiting outside the council room. They each had grins on their faces. The councils had already gathered inside the council room and the meeting was about to begin. Now all they had to do was wait for the Daimyo who was arriving secretly into Konoha. As if on cue the Daimyo emerged with his samurai guards. They smiled at each other and nodded. The meeting was about to begin.

Inside the Council Room. . .

"Alright," Tsunade began earning everyone's attention. "Before we begin we have a special guest arriving for this meeting."

This caused most of the council to blink in surprise. Shikaku spoke up, "And who might that be, Hokage-sama?"

"That would be me," came a voice and the council gasped in surprise as the Fire Daimyo entered the room. Danzo took a deep breath. He knew what was coming. "Daimyo-sama, what are you doing here?"

"Indeed, what am I doing here? I believe your Hokage has the answer."

All eyes turned to the Hokage as she smiled, "I assume you are all aware that a week ago myself and the Konoha 10 set out to Uzushiogakure to recover Naruto from the supposed kidnapper. At least I assume the parents of the shinobi who left know of this."

The Shinobi Council all nodded while the Civilian Council blinked in surprise.

"So you left to find the demon brat, huh?" One councilman asked annoyed. "So where is that blonde brat?"

A glare from both the Hokage and the Daimyo shut him up. Tsunade sighed, "It is the reason why I called you here. We did in fact manage to locate Naruto."

"You did," Inoichi blinked in surprise. "I could have sworn he would've been announcing his return with that loud voice he has."

"Unless, of course, you were unable to actually retrieve him," Hiashi's eyes narrowed.

"No, he is here in Konoha," the Daimyo stated matter-of-factly surprising the councils. "Listening into this very conversation in fact."

"What!" a council member shouted. "He cannot listen in! He should be punished for such an action!"

"No, he will not," Tsunade said coldly and firmly. "He has both mine and Daimyo-sama's permission to listen in. This meeting does, after all, concern him."

Tsunade smiled as she looked towards the entrance, "Isn't that right, Rikudo-sama?"

"Really, baa-chan?" Naruto said as he entered the room. A gasp escaped that councils. "You know I hate the formal stuff."

"Better get used to it, gaki."

"Naruto," Shikaku said in surprise. "What the hell happened to you? What happened to your eyes?"

"Well, you see..."

Naruto spent the next half and hours explaining his story about his taking and his training. He also explained whom he truly was and some of the abilities he now possessed because of his dojutsu: the Rinnegan. Both councils felt light-headed after the explanation. Neither side had expected this though the civilian side constantly shouted out denial against Naruto's claims. These were silenced by glares from both Tsunade and the Daimyo respectively.

"Now after all that I assume you all wish to know who my Six Paths actually are?" He recieved nods from both sides. "Very well then."

He turned to the doorway from which he had entered, "Hey, you guys can come in now."

It was then that six people entered the room. Horrified and stunned gasps filled the room and many on both sides fell over in sheer surprise. Before them stood the first four hokages and two, stunning red-headed women.

"It's-It's not possible," Hiashi stated in sheer surprise. The other clan heads were sweating. Naruto had four Hokages now working for him. They silently prayed for the civilians of the village.

"I assure you, Hiashi,' Minato replied in a serious manner. "That it is very possible."

"Now, onto the first topic we wish to discuss," Kushina spoke up. A terrible glare fixated upon the councils caused them to sweat further. "And that is why you civilians abused mine and Minato-kun's son."

Another round of stunned silence and horror filled the room. Naruto was who's son?

One of the councilmen finally managed to "The demon brat is you-?"

CRUNCH!

Kushina's and Minato's fists quickly found their way into the councilman's jaw sending him flying out of the room. The Civilian Council recoiled in fear at the sudden attack. Minato growled, "The next person to call my son a demon gets a rasengan up their ass. Are we clear?"

Many of the council swallowed hard and the killer intent leaking off the two less-than-happy parents. They replied in unison, "H-Hai, Yondaime-sama."

"Now then, I'm waiting for an answer," Kushina snarled murderously. Dead silence only followed. "You don't have one do you. At least, not one you wish to admit. Let me guess. It was prejudice because my son held something that had caused so much destruction. Because he held it, you used him as a scapegoat out of fear and anger."

She took a deep breath and then screamed out in a roar that left the whole village shuddering in fear, "DO YOU KNOW HOW IDIOTIC THAT MOVE WAS YOU FUCKING BASTARDS?!"

Minato's hand found its way to Kushina's shoulder, "Kushina-koi, calm down please."

Kushina glared at him for a minute before backing down and allowing her husband to step forward, "I am only going to say this once to you ungrateful bastards: Naruto's seal is empowered by the Shinigami himself. It has no chance in breaking unless Naruto unseals the demon himself or Naruto dies. That's right, the boy your civilians beat daily is not only my son, but beating him could have very well unsealed the Kyuubi. Not to mention that if you had had him killed not only would I have convinced Kami to let me back down to Earth to beat all your ass into the ground but Kyuubi would have been _freed_!"

The Civilian Council swallowed hard and sweated even more profusely. Their fear and hatred could have freed the demon they were trying to kill both physically and emotionally? Dear Kami were they lucky.

At least, until the parents of said demon container had returned.

"How about we get to the actual reason why we are here," Mito spoke up. One of the councilmen blinked, "My lady, forgive me for asking but who are you?"

Mito's eye twitched and Hashirama sighed, "That is Uzumaki Mito, my wife. She was the first Jinchuuriki of Kyuubi."

"She was WHAT?!" They shouted out.

"Kyuubi's been in the village _that_ long?" Tsume shouted out in a surprised tone.

"Yes," Mito stated as if it was obvious. "Only members of the Uzumaki Clan have the ability to be the Jinchuuriki of Kyuubi. I myself was the first, Uzumaki Kushina, wife of the Yondaime, was the second, and her son, Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto is currently the third."

Everyone gaped. Who would have thought?

"Anyway, back on topic," Tobirama spoke out forcefully.

"Yes indeed," Hashirama agreed as he preceded to glare at the Civilian Council. "So, I hear you've been slowly taking power from the Hokage and giving it to yourselves. Is that true?"

His eyes said everything. He was _daring_ them to lie to him.

"Yes," the Daimyo said with a dead serious tone. "I would like to know this as well."

They began to pale further. Again, their actions were coming to bite them in the ass.

"Well, Shodai-sama, Daimyo-sama," a council member began, trying his best not to stutter out nervously. "You see. . . we were simply, er . . . well, we were simply. . ."

"Answer the question," the Shodai shouted angrily.

"Yes. . ."

The answer was but a squeak, but everyone heard it. Tobirama's eyes narrowed, "You do realize this is a _shinobi_ village right. We allowed you a word in because you are members of this village, too. _However_, the Hokage has complete authority over what happens in this village. _You_ and the shinobi council are but to advise him or her. _You_ should know this."

"You also disobeyed my decrees also did you not?" the Daimyo frowned. "I punished you for your impudence and all you did was trying to grasp onto more and more power to, if I am not mistaken, help repel the punishments I have off of yourself. Am I not correct?"

The Council bowed their heads in shame, "You are, Daimyo-sama."

"So. . . tell me why I should not have you executed for treason?" the council shouted out its surprise, horror, and began to beg for mercy. "SILENCE! You tried to gain power away from the kage of a _shinobi_ village and you did it not only to have control over this village but to also get out of the punishment _I_ set upon you! That is treason and an attempt at usurping power! Give me one good reason to execute you all right now!"

"Daimyo-sama," Naruto spoke up. "May I say something."

The Daimyo took a deep breath, "Very well, Rikudo-sama."

Naruto looked directly at them all, "I don't hate you. Despite everything you did I still wanted to become Hokage and protect this village. Now, I cannot become Hokage, for I am the Rikudo Sennin. I will bring peace and order and I can't do this without asking you to change your ways."

Naruto turned to the Daimyo, "Daimyo-sama, I request that a time of probation be placed upon the Civilian Council. They are unable to attend meetings or be able to use any benefits of the position for six months. After that, I request they have one last chance to redeem themselves. They will return, if proven ready and worthy to return, to their positions with the amount of power they are suppose to have: advising and reporting civilian problems and profits to the Hokage. If they attempt anything like this again, then your sentence on them shall be carried out. Is this alright with you, Daimyo-sama?"

There was a pause as the Daimyo thought it over. The Shinobi council, the Godaime, and the Six Paths all looked at their feudal lord with curiosity, wondering if he would accept Naruto's turns, while also wondering why Naruto would request such a thing.

Tsunade smiled, "_That gaki is too damn nice and hopeful. Well, he may be the Rikudo Sennin but he's still Naruto. Glad to know that hasn't changed at all._"

On the other side of the room, the Civilian Council was shaking with nervousness while silently thanking the innocent boy who they put down so needlessly and foolishly and vowed to treat him better next time. They were also begging to sweat Kami above that the Daimyo allowed them to live.

The Daimyo sighed then smiled, "Very well, Rikudo-sama. One more chance."

The council breathed a sign of relief though still inwardly upset that they lost all the power they had struggled to gain.

"However," the council immediately went on edge again. "A single step offline will result in you being a head shorter and there will be a test once probation is up, and a strict one at that. If you do not pass, you will not regain your position. Are we _clear_?"

"Hai, Daimyo-sama."

"Now then, Rikudo-sama. I do believe it is time for our little announcement to the village, do you not agree?"

Naruto smiled, "Indeed, I believe it is time."

"ANBU," Tsunade called out. Immediately three ANBU appeared. "Call all shinobi and civilians for an important announcement. Attendance is mandatory."

"Hai, Hokage-sama," they answered and left.

"That is all. You are all dismissed."

As they all got up to leave, Tobirama took a closer look at his old students as they muttered disgusted words to each other. He also noticed the chakra signatures coming off of another they were talking to: Danzo. Chakra signatures that were all too familiar to him. He glanced at his fellow paths and they nodded back their understanding. Hiruzen turned to Tsunade, "Tsunade-hime, how long will it take to gather everyone for the announcement?"

Tsunade blinked in surprise. Shouldn't he know this? "A couple of hours I should think, sensei."

"Very well, that's plenty of time."

Hashirama looked towards Naruto, "May we."

Naruto nodded, "Go."

With that, the Six Paths left, leaving a confused Tsunade and Fire Daimyo. Tsunade spoke up, "Um, Naruto. What's going on."

Naruto looked at her with a serious face, "It looks like we really do have a couple treacherous rats after all. Do not worry, however. The exterminators have been dispatched."

* * *

**Oh wow, I am so sorry guys that this took so long. I promise that the next chapter won't take this long. I'm sorry but my life has been busy busy busy. Anyway, thanks for reading a please read and review. If you have an questions, don't be afraid to PM me. Oh and here's the Omake I promised!**

**~Teddypro**

* * *

**Omake (Warning: Semi-crack segment + out-of-culture song)**

That was when Kaosu spoke up, "Well, one last thing before we go off to do whatever. Myself and the Paths all made a bet on how many of you would fainted. Which was 9 or you. Since no on picked nine we've all officially lost. So, because of this, we all have to sing you a song."

The Paths all sighed. Kaosu followed suit, "Ready? 1. . . 2. . . 3!"

**"'m a little teapot**  
**Short and stouts**  
**Here is my handle**  
**Here is my spout**  
**When I get all steamed up**  
**I just shout**  
**Tip me over and pour me out**

**I'm a very special pot **  
**It's true**  
**Here's an example of what I can do**  
**I can turn my handle into a spout**  
**Tip me over and pour me out**

**I'm a little teapot**  
**Short and stouts**  
**Here is my handle**  
**Here is my spout**  
**When I get all steamed up**  
**I just shout**  
**Tip me over and pour me out**

**I'm a very special pot **  
**It's true**  
**Here's an example of what I can do**  
**I can turn my handle into a spout**  
**Tip me over and pour me out"**

By the end, the entire group was laughing their asses off. Even Sasuke and Sakura gave out a little chuckle. They had just witnessed four past Hokages, two ex-Jinchuurikis of the greatest of the Biju, and a Harbinger of _Yami_ sing '_I'm a Little Teapot_'. Never again would any shinobi see such a hilarious sight.

"Oh Kami, that is too much," Kiba shouted rolling along the ground.

"Make it stop! oh, please make it stop," Tenten gasped out.

"Oh this is amazing blackmail, hehe," Shikamaru smirked.

"Payback for all the times you've embarrassed me, jiji-san, baa-chan," Tsunade laughed out loud.

Kaosu sighed, "Yeah, laugh it up."

"Just know that Naruto gets his pranking side from me," Kushina grinned. "And I'm sure the other Paths wouldn't mind joining in, wouldn't you?"

"Hehe, payback's a bitch," Mito smirked. They other shinobi instantly stopped laughed. "Yeah, thought so."

* * *

**Anyway now, finally on the poll:**

**Large Sakura Bashing - 26 (Winner)**

**Change for Better - 8**

**Small Sakura Bashing - 7**

**Jealous of Hinata - 6**

**Well, if it's what you guys want, I honestly don't care either way. Sakura bashing into a crater is now what's going to happen. Sorry people who voted against it, we still love you.**

**Response to Reviews**

**{Leaf Ranger} - **...well this chapter was great till the end. The end made me sad and angry, due to what a f$%-ing a$$-hole Yami is. Please just smack that a-hole of a diety around and shove them into purgatory. *sighs* Just...ugghh. The good mood I had was totally ruined by that ending. F$%-ing b$%& of a diety.

_**Answer:** _Well, Yami _is_ the God of Darkness. Making him an ass was sorta the idea. . .

**{Slytherin's Pimp} -** Yami needs to treat his people better, and Danzo needs to be destroyed

**_Answer_**: Your wish shall be granted. . . next chapter. . . I think. . . . . . . . . . well let's see shall we?

**{Lightningblade49} - **I wonder how all the Biju will reavct to there fathers return.

_**Answer:**_ *Deadpans* I'll give ya three guesses. . .

**{Zera of the Half Moon} -** *is speechless* ... Holy fucking shit I want to MARRY this fanfic.

**_Answer:_** O_O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . um. . . you may now kiss the bride?

**Anyway, thank you all and I shall see you soon!**

**Note: Did you see what I did with the chapter title? I labeled it like a Supreme Court case. Lol**


	10. Extermination: Six Paths vs ROOT

**Disclaimer - I do not own Naruto.**

**Chapter 10 - Extermination: Six Paths vs ROOT**

* * *

"I can hardly believe that demon brat!" Koharu muttered angrily. "Figures he'd fool that idiotic Shinobi council to his side, but to get the the Daimyo on his side as well?"

"Well, the Shodai's wife and the Yondaime's wife claimed to have held the demon before the brat did. . ."

"Oh please, Homura, that demon had something to do with that story. And this so called 'Harbinger of Yami' obviously is in league with the demon to bootleg us!"

"Quiet, both of you," Danzo ordered as he continued to walk on. "We are in a very tight spot here. I can't allow you two to do something foolish and have our standing lowered. Demon or not, the boy has a lot of sway over our actions right now. We are very limited in what we can do without arrousing suspicion from both him, the Hokage, and the Daimyo."

Both elders silenced themselves and grunted in annoyance. The demon brat had them by the balls and they couldn't do anything about it.

"I am heading to the ROOT Headquarters," Danzo told the two elders. "I need some time to think before the announcement."

"Hai," they nodded and went their seperate ways.

None of them noticed the six pairs of Rinnegan eyes that gazed at them from afar.

* * *

"So what you're telling me is," Tsunade growled in anger and disgust. "That my great-uncle sense a dozen sharingan signatures and jiji-san's DNA in Danzo's arm?"

Naruto nodded is affirmitive.

"Danzo truly has fallen far," the Daimyo muttered his disgust. "He's as bad as Orochimaru."

"I agree."

Tsunade looked at the Rikudo Sennin, "So I take it your Paths are going to take care of it?"

Naruto smirked, "Yep. They need a chance to stretch their legs every now and again you know?"

* * *

Danzo finally reached the inner sanctum of his ROOT Headquarters. Now he had to think about how he was going to implement the plan he had made with Orochimaru while figuring out how to coincide it with what the Village Elders wanted as well. This would not be an easy task as Orochimaru wanted complete control over Konoha and Hi no Kuni in general the Elders simply wanted to employ what they thought was best for Konoha and allow know one to stop them because they knew best. They didn't like Orochimaru so this would pose a problem, one which Danzo had been planning on rectifying once he made the office of Hokage. However, now due to the new_ Rikudo Sennin_ his position was a torn away temporarily and he'd be subjugated to that difficult test before he could return in six months. He knew he had to play smart with whatever the test was as to not draw suspicion.

He had warned Homura and Koharu that he had had a feeling the meeting wouldn't end well for them. He told them not to speak unless spoken to due to this and they simply shrugged and complied. Lucky for them it might have been that that had saved them from the terrible wrath of the Hokage and Daimyo.

Speaking of terrible wrath, it was then he got a cold sensation that he was being watched. . . and the observes were not too happy.

Danzo jolted up out of his seat and shouted out, "Who's there?"

There was silence for a moment before he heard a voice nearby, "Didn't I order you to disband this ANBU unit of your's. . . Danzo?"

Danzo turned and before him stood his old comrade: Sarutobi Hiruzen. Once Sandaime Hokage of Konoha, now the Rikudo Sennin's Naraka Path.

"Hiruzen," Danzo said simply.

"Disobeying the Hokage's orders is a serious offense Danzo," his old teammate said simply. "But I can see now that it that this runs even deeper. It runs straight into betrayal.'

"Betrayal?! I have not betrayed Konoha! I only seek to make it the most powerful and feared hidden village in the world!"

"I admire your patriotism," came another voice behind Danzo who turned to see Hashirama and his sensei walking towards him only to stop a few feet away. "But this is not the way to go."

"Especially due to what you did to the Uchiha Clan," Tobirama added.

"What?" Danzo shouted outraged. "Hiruzen was just as much involved in that as I was!"

"Yes, we know," came a fourth voice, who ironically was the Yondaime. "Hiruzen already informed us."

"While we weren't happy with what had occurred," Tobirama spoke up. "He did bring up one important factor: you were the one that convinced him to make it the entire Uchiha clan."

"So what if I did? It was necessary! What if the remaining Uchiha members had revolted due to their family members being slaughtered?"

"Did you ever even consider that they'd be foolish to try such a thing. Such a massacre would weaken them and any attempt to revolt could have been stopped by the other clans. Did you really have to kill the civilian Uchiha as well? Or even the children of the shinobi? What could they have possibly done?"

"Then blame Hiruzen! It was he who approved it!" Danzo yelled.

"And again we say it was you who convinced him and everyone else that there was no other option that to slaughter _all_ of them," Minato stated.

"Massacre aside you did something even more horrendous than leading to the deaths of nearly all of them," Hashirama spoke with a very cold voice and with an icy gaze. "Don't think we haven't sensed the sharingans on your arm or in you right eye socket. We aren't stupid or ignorant Danzo. Especially with the Rinnegan we can very well see those chakra signatures.'

"Not only that," Tobirama spoke with equal harshness. "You also stole the DNA of my brother!"

Danzo swallowed but his face didn't change, "I did what was necessary to strengthen Konoha."

"Strengthen Konoha?" Minato spat. "Or strengthen yourself?"

"You sought to gain power over Konoha," Hiruzen frowned. "I suspect the rise in the civilian council's boldness was due to you as well."

"They were quick to see I was the perfect choice for Hokage," Danzo stated. "Not that whore who now sits in my place."

CRASH!

Within an instant, Danzo found himself getting friendly with the ground as Hashirama displayed an excellent display of fist to skull combat against Danzo. He was snarling with rage, "That whore, _Danzo_, happens to be my _granddaughter_! It is because of your arrogance, pride, and lust for power that you are not deserving of the title of Hokage!"

Hashirama turned away disgusted and Danzo struggled to get up. Suddenly, Danzo bolted in an attempt to escape the past Hokages. He suddenly found himself unable to move. He looked down and noticed his body wrapped in chains. Chakra chains. Only one person he knew of knew how to do that. He looked up. Before him was Uzumaki Kushina, the chains jutting from her hands. Behind her was Uzumaki Mito, a non-amused look on her face.

"Going somewhere, Danzo?" Kushina sneered.

"Tobirama-nii," Mito spoke. "Check his memory for anything else we may have missed."

Tobirama nodded as he placed his hand on Danzo's head. His and the other Paths eyes widened at the memories they received.

* * *

Naruto's eyes widened as he stifled a gasp gaining the attention of the Hokage and Daimyo, who had agreed to stay with Naruto until his Paths returned. Tsunade blinked, "Naruto, what is it?"

"Danzo has been conspiring against us for a long time," Naruto muttered angrily. "He's been working with Orochimaru for years. In exchange for making Danzo the Hokage, he would help Orochimaru become the Fire Daimyo."

"HE WHAT?!" Both the Hokage and the Daimyo.

"How long has he been conspiring with that damned serpent?!" the Daimyo asked enraged.

"Years, like I said."

"Damn him," Tsunade growled. "When I get my hands on him I'm going to smash him straight to hell!"

Naruto laughed with a hint of dark foreboding slithered in, "I think my Paths have got that handled."

* * *

CRACK!

Danzo flew headfirst into the nearby wall after being delivered another blow from the Paths. The Paths were in a complete and utter rage due to their discovery of Danzo betrayal. The war-hawk hadn't even gotten the chance to use the Shodai's DNA or the numerous Sharingans he had. They attacked too swiftly, too brutally. . .

. . . too mercilessly.

Danzo was a beaten wreck crumpled on the floor. He weakly turned his gaze upwards into the burning Rinnegan eyes of the Six Paths.

"Any last words, Danzo?" Kushina snarled at the bandaged man.

"Just one," Danzo muttered out. "ROOT!"

Almost instantly a couple dozen ROOT members surrounded them. "Destroy the intruders!"

"Hai, Danzo-sama," one answered and all of them attacked. With that, the ROOT-nin charged at the Six Paths.

"**Shinra Tensei**!" Minato called blasting away half of the ROOT-nin. Mito summoned a katana in each hand and gave a deadly display of her swordsmanship to the ROOT-nin. None of the ROOT in her way survived. More arrived and Tobirama waved his hand, "**Suiton: Suiryudan no Jutsu!**"

The water dragon arose from the moisture in the air and dispatched the ROOT with ease. A few, however, did managed to get out of the way and they were met with a flurry of punches via one Uzumaki Kushina. Another wave of ROOT arrived and Hashirama stepped forward. He went through the hand signs and shouted out, "**Mokuton: Sashiki no Jutsu**!"

The Preta Path thrusted his arm forward, firing wooden spikes from his arms that impaled the ROOT-nin. Minato looked at the few remaining ROOT-nin and uttered two words, "**Bansho Ten'in**."

The ROOT suddenly found themselves flying towards the former Yondaime Hokage. As they did so, Hiruzen jumped over his successor to the title and shouted out, "**Katon: Karyu Edan**!"

A stream of fire erupted from Hiruzen's mouth and consumed the ROOT-nin mid-flight. Little was left of them but ashes.

When the Paths were done massacring the ROOT-nin they became painfully aware that Danzo was missing.

"Dammit," Minato cursed. "The rat got away."

"Hard to kill as a damn cockroach," Kushina snarled.

"Come on," Hashirama called. "He couldn't have gotten far. Tobirama!"

"On it," the Human Path replied as he concentrated. "Found him. Come on."

* * *

Danzo had almost made it out of the ROOT Headquarters. He had to get out of Konoha. The Paths knew what he had done and that probably meant the brat did as well. This also meant that the Hokage and Daimyo knew about it as well. He would be branded a traitor and he needed to flee as not to be executed.

"_That damn brat_," Danzo growled inwardly. "_He ruined everything. Nevertheless, I will take hold over Konoha. I will raise it to become the mighty and feared village it should be_!"

"Going somewhere, Danzo?" came a voice startling the war-hawk. Suddenly, he saw a yellow flash in front of him and the next thing he knew he was flying backwards only to be hit again smashing him into the ground via a foot to the face. Danzo opened his eye. Above him stood his sensei, Senju Tobirama. "You won't get away again, _Danzo_."

"Then. . . you leave me no choice. . . sensei." Danzo jolted up and tore off his bandages, revealing his sharingan covered arm. He flashed through the hand signs and cried out, "**Mokuton: Mokusatsu Shibari no Jutsu**!"

Danzo held his arm out to his old sensei and it instantly turned into wood and fired straight at him. But before it could reach Tobirama, Mito smashed down from above them and crushed the wooden appendage into the ground. Said wooden appendage then sprouted jointed which began to wrap around Mito, immobilizing her. At least until two giant blades shot from her back. These blades cut through the wood technique the instant the sprouted and Mito jumped backwards out of Danzo's hold.

"**Katon: Karyu Edan**!" called out the voice of the Naraka Path as a rain of fire fell upon Danzo, who swiftly end his jutsu and flashed through another," **Mokuton: Mokujoheki**!"

Immediately, a wall of wooden clashed in front of the fire and managed to resist it enough to stop the fireballs. He thought he had a breather until a voice cried out behind him, "**Rasengan**!"

Danzo felt the swirling ball of chakra smash into his back. He barely managed to utter out, "**Izanagi**!"

The next thing Minato knew, Danzo was standing face him just a few feet away, "What? How did you-?"

"Izanagi," Danzo answered. "A special technique of the Sharingan. With it, I can remove the boundaries between illusion and reality. You cannot kill me."

"Everyone can die, Danzo," Minato frowned. "Even the original Rikudo Sennin did."

"Indeed he did, but of old age. That shall be me, and you shall not be able to stop me. Six Paths or not."

"We shall see about that!" came Kushina's voice as she landed besides Minato. "**Kuchiyose no Jutsu**!"

With a large poof of smoke, a giant, tarantula-like spider that possessed two large Rinnegan eyes and six small Rinnegan eyes around them. It was at least three times the size of Kushina. The spider shot it's upper body into the sky and moved its abdomen under it's belly. It fired a stream of webbing at Danzo. The fast movement of the spider had put him on alert so he jumped out of the way of the stream, however, his foot got caught. The spider charged, eager to catch its, pray. Danzo drew out a kunai, "**Futon: Shinkujin**!"

With the jutsu effectively turning the kunai into a wind-infused sword. He swung and injured the approaching summon. The beast screeched in pain and retreated up a nearby wall. Danzo then used it to slice himself free of the webbing. He quickly got to his feet and his reward for doing so was a kick sraight to the face thanks to Kushina. The strike caused Danzo to fly backwards towards a waiting Tobirama, who promply called out his technique, "**Suiton: Suishoha**."

The giant vortex of water shot from the ground and threatened to crush Danzo under the power of its waves. Danzo, however, countered mid-flight, "**Futon: Shinku Renpa**!"

The blades of wind cut through the waves of water and Danzo landed feet first. Mito then appeared behind him with a katana inhand, "Take this you bastard!"

The blade sliced through Danzo who proceeded to shout out, "**Izanagi**!"

The next thing Mito knew Danzo was beside her, away from her blade, with another attack already prepared, "**Futon: Shinkugyoku**!"

The shotgun blast of wind blades shot from Danzo mouth. Mito quickly substituted herself for her husband, who proceeded to absorb the chakra attack. Danzo's eyes widened in surprise as Hashirama smirked, "**Mokuton: Sashiki no Jutsu**."

The wooden spikes penetrated deep into Danzo's torso, but he didn't flinch, "**Izanagi**!"

Again, Danzo appeared unharmed. Kushima frowned, "Damn, this is getting annoying."

"Something's got to prevent that technique from working," Minato said. "Every technique has some form of weakness."

"So then, let's find it," Hiruzen replied. "**Doton: Dosekiryu**!"

A large dragon made of earth and rock erupted from the ground and charged in its seemingly-suicidal strike towards it's opponent. Danzo jumped forward towards the rock dragon and, in mid-air, spun around to be parrallel with the floor and shouted out, "**Futon: Renkudan**!"

The wind bullet hit the dragon under the head, knocking the attack up a bit, so that it passed harmlessly over Danzo who then attempted to get back onto his feet.

The key word being 'attempted'.

"**Mokuton: Jubaku Eiso**!" shouted the Preta Path and wooden branches shot up from the ground encase Danzo mid-air. Danzo was now effectively immobilized. The Six Paths gathered in front of the encased traitor. Danzo began to laugh and taunt at them, "Fools, as long as I have Izanagi you cannot kill me. It's a technique that warps reality itself!"

Hiruzen grunted, "Danzo, for too long have I left your actions slide. No more. What I am about to do, not even Izanagi can save you."

The next words his old comrade spoke startled Danzo, "**Kuchiyose no Jutsu: The King of Hell**."

With that, a monstrous white and black head with Rinnegan eyes, violet fire surrounding it, and the kanji of 'king' on its head arose from the ground. Danzo immediately felt his tongue protrude far out of his mouth; much farther than it should have gone. Hiruzen frowned, "Danzo, you are going to answer one question of mine. Did you do what you did for yourself or for the village?"

Danzo managed to muttered out, "I did it for the village, of course."

Judgment was passed.

The King of Hell's purple, hand-like tongue proceeded to grab the appendage extending from Danzo's mouth. Danzo attempted to stop the supposed King of Hell, "**Izanagi**!"

Nothing happened.

The King of Hell, without stopping, tore the appendage out of Danzo and devoured it. It was at that moment that the King of Hell unsummoned and Danzo's body went limp. Hiruzen sighed, "I am saddened that the truth has been revealed."

Hashirama sighed, "If you lie, Lord Enma will pull out your tongue. I see the old saying is indeed true."

"Indeed," Minato nodded in agreement.

It was then that more ROOT-nin appeared; two dozen at least stood before the Six Paths. "What have you done to Danzo-sama? You shall all-"

Kushina snapped her fingers and suddenly the giant spider summon dropped from the ceiling in front of the ROOT-nin. The members of ROOT didn't stand a chance.

Hiruzen sighed, "We should get back to Naruto. Tsunade-hime can send ANBU to finish the rest of ROOT off."

"I'd say the spider's doing a good enough job of that," Hashirama muttered. Kushhead buckled a bit at Tobirama's comment, "Come on, let's head back."

* * *

The Six Paths appeared before Naruto, Tsunade, and the Fire Daimyo. Naruto smirked, "What took you so long? We were about to head to the announce the return of the Rikudo Sennin."

"Danzo was a damn slippery cockroach," Mito admitted.

"Dead?" Tsunade asked.

"Dead."

"And the base?"

"I have a summon dealing with the remaining ROOT," Kushina answered. "But you might want to send ANBU to deal with any who may have escaped or any of the content within the base itself."

"Very well, ANBU."

Instantly, three ANBU appeared, "Hai, Hokage-sama?"

"Take four teams and search the ROOT headquarters. Be on guard, we don't know how many are left."

"**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**," Naruto spoke and a single shadow clone appeared. "My shadow clone will show you the way."

"Arigatou, Rikudo-sama."

Naruto's eyebrow twitched in annoyance as the shadow clone lead the ANBU to the base. Tsunade and the Paths snickered and the Daimyo couldn't helped but grin at the Sennin's reaction.

"Well then Rikudo-_sama_, are you ready?" Naruto stifled a groan and nodded. "I was made ready."

* * *

The denizens of Konoha had gathered, ready to hear whatever announcement was going to be made. They were chatting among themselves until the Hokage and the Daimyo appeared before them on the platform. The Daimyo spoke, "People on Konohagakure. As you know, I am the Fire Daimyo of Hi no Kuni. You are gathered here today for a revelation. The truth shall be revealed before all of you. You all have committed a crime against your past Hokages and now your guilt shall be unveiled."

The people of Konoha were stunned. They were being called out for a crime? What could they have possibly done?

"A crime that involves one Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto," the Daimyo spoke. There was instant outrage but the Daimyo immediately silenced them. "SILENCE! You all abused and beat a boy who is your savior! I am going to reveal this right now: Naruto has the Kyuubi no Kitsune sealed within him. NO! He is NOT the fox! He is its jailer! He is the only reason the Kyuubi is not rampaging through the village killing you all!"

They were silent. Most didn't know what to think. The Daimyo continued, "You are all ignorant fools. If you noticed what I had said ealier, I called him _Namikaze_-Uzumaki Naruto. That is because Naruto is the SON of the Yondaime Hokage!"

A collective gasp echoed through the crowd. There was no way. . .

"In your search for a scapegoat, you sought out the container of the Kyuubi. Do you know how foolish that was?! If you had accidently killed the boy the Kyuubi would've been _free_! And this time there would be no great seal masters to save your ungrateful hides."

For a majority of Konoha's citizens, a thick lump formed in their throats.

"Naruto was taken from this village two years ago to be trained to fulfill a duty given to him since birth. He has now returned, not as a genin of Konoha, but as the reincarnation of the Rikudo Sennin, the Founder of the Art of Ninjutsu!"

In that instant, Naruto appeared next to the Daimyo and the crowd was shocked into silence. Even more so when six familiar figures appeared behind Naruto. Many shinobi swallowed. Naruto smiled, "Greetings, Konoha. I am Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto, the Rikudo Sennin, and these our my Six Paths: Senju Hashirama, Senju Tobirama, Sarutobi Hiruzen, Namikaze Minato, Uzumaki Mito, and Uzumaki Kushina. I come to you now to reveal to the world that the Founder of the Shinobi World is alive again."

There was a brief silence before Naruto spoke again.

"I. . . have returned."

* * *

It was a tense night for Orochimaru as he waited for news of what had occurred in Konoha with the Civilian Council and the new Rikudo Sennin. He wondered what had ultimately happened with them. Obviously, they weren't going to have any more power in Konoha save for a couple of benefits, and even then that was a maybe. Danzo needed to keep a low profile so he wouldn't be discovered as Orochimaru's plan to conquer Hi no Kuni did involve Danzo. However, just as he thought this, a messanger came into his lab.

"Orochimaru-sama, word from Konoha. Danzo and ROOT have been discovered and destroyed by the Six Paths."

"WHAT?!"

"A-apparently, th-th-the former Nidaime Hok-kage sensed Danzo-s-sama's sharingan eyes," the messanger stuttered out seeing his lord's rage. The messenger had heard of Orochimaru's poor treatment of messengers who brought him bad news. It was never pleasant. And this proved true here as well, for within seconds of delivering the message, Orochimaru tore him apart in a scene best not describe to the normal civilian.

"Damn him," Orochimaru muttered angrily. "Damn that gaki and those foolish Six Paths of his! He's set me back Kami knows how long due to his meddling. I will find a way to defeat you! I am immortal! I cannot die against a gaki who claims to be the Rikudo Sennin!"

* * *

Naruto woke up the morning after the announcement exhausted. Not physically, but mentally. The number of apologizes and people wishing to see the return of the Rikudo Sennin got him both annoyed and tired very fast.

And they wouldn't stop _coming_.

Naruto did appreciate it that people cared but the thing was he knew they only really cared because of his heritage and because they felt guilty. If his heritage hadn't been revealed and only their folly for their treatment of him in his younger years was revealed, he doubted that they'd have the same reaction.

Plus, the whole situation was very repetitive. Which made it very annoying even with his newfound patience.

Nevertheless, he was happy. He was going to have his first real and offical date with Hinata. There was little that could foul his mood now; even those villagers who had begun to become more of an annoyance than someone he sought to please.

After he was dressed in his Sennin attire, he quickly moved to the Hyuuga compound. He sought out Hinata, who was training outside with the Rasengan. He smiled. She liked the technique and he was proud that she did. It was his father's technique, only to be taught to those he truly trusted. And he trusted Hinata completely.

He walked over to her, "Good morning, Hinata-chan."

Having walked up into her blind spot by accident, she jumped and attempted to use the Rasengan to strike the offender. However, the ball of chakra hit an invisible wall suddenly and was instantly absorbed by the young Rikudo Sennin. Hinata gasped slightly and frowned, "Naruto-kun! Don't do that! You scared me!"

Naruto scratched the back of his head sheepishly, "Er, sorry Hinata-chan."

"You should be! I almost hit you with the Rasengan!"

"I can absorb Ninjutsu, Hinata-chan," Naruto reminded her.

"Even so-!"

Naruto cut her off by moving behind her and wrapping his arms around her. He proceeded to whisper into her ear, "Hinata-chan. . . have you know faith in me?"

Hinata blushed deeply and shivered in pleasure at the closeness, "Of course I have faith in you, Naruto-kun."

Naruto spun her around so that she faced him, "Then you have nothing to worry about! Stop fretting over something so little, Hinata-chan."

"You call nearly shoving an A-ranked jutsu into your skull something little?"

"Little for someone like me."

"Naruto-kun, you might be a little too overconfident with you newfound abilities."

"Maybe just a little," Naruto chuckled. Suddenly, a new voice entered the picture, "Oh, and what might we have here?"

Naruto and Hinata turned to see Hinata's father, Hiashi, approaching them. Hinata stepped backwards so she was leaning against Naruto's chest, "Hello, otou-sama."

Hiashi looked at the scene and then at his daughter, "I assume there's something the two of you wish to tell me?"

"Hai, otou-sama," Hinata answered and Naruto followed up, "I am currently in a relationship with your daughter, Hiashi-sama."

Hiashi's eyes widened at the maturity the boy now had, however, it faded away almost instantly, "I see and when were you going to tell me this?"

Naruto blinked a couple of times then shrugged, "To be honest, I never quite thought about it. We sort of got together when I was here incognito a couple of years ago."

"I see. And why didn't you ask me if you could date my daughter?"

"No one was supposed to know I was here in Konoha that day and the whole thing with us getting into a relationship wasn't exactly something I had come to Konoha to do. It was something I decided to do after overhearing a conversation with a couple others of the Konoha 11."

Hiashi obviously seemed displeased, "And why didn't you inform me at least that you two had gotten into a relationship?"

Hinata finally had enough, "Otou-sama! Naruto-kun had to keep himself secret when he was here! Either of us either asking for permission to be in a relationship or informing you that we were would've blown that cover. Besides, I love Naruto-kun and he loves me back. Nothing you say or do will ever make me leave him."

"Are you defying me?!"

"Hiashi," Naruto spoke in a commanding tone. Hiashi stifled a gasp. The boy had an air of authority; one that even was convincing him to subconsciously follow. Hiashi frowned, "What is it?"

"Hinata's a grown woman and a good soul. She can make good decisions on her own without you having to interfere because of something you don't want. I could care less about what you think she should do for 'the good of the clan'. I love her and she loves me in return. You aren't going to separate us, and if I need to I will subdue you right here and now."

It was a threat and one Hiashi knew the boy could back up with ease. According to what Kakashi had told him after the previous day's announcement, the boy was now considered SSS-ranked, someone that Hiashi knew he could never beat. Hiashi half-grunted, half sighed. He looked at the boy before him and spoke, "Fine, boy. But if you ever hurt her, you are going to suffer a severe lack of limbs. SSS-ranked shinobi or not."

"I would never do anything to hurt Hinata. I swear on my title as the Rikudo Sennin."

Hiashi nodded before turning and walking away. Hinata looked at her boyfriend, "Thank you, Naruto-kun."

"Anything for you, Hinata-chan," Naruto smiled genuinely. "Now, do you mind if we go to Ichiraku? I haven't been there in two years you know!"

"Of course, Naruto-kun," Hinata smiled back. "I would love to go there for our date."

With that, Hinata latched onto Naruto's arm and they both walked out of the compound towards the world's best ramen shop.

Nearby, up in a tree, Jiraiya was watching and giggling, "Oh, they're getting so close. I bet I'll get a lot of material from them one day soon!"

"Ahem!" came a voice behind Jiraiya. He froze and slowly turned around to see Naruto's Six Paths on the tree behind him. Kushina was at the forefront; arms crossed and foot tapping. "What was that about peaking on my son and his girl?"

Jiraiya swallowed nervously, "Well, I, uh. . . you see, uh, well. . . uh, it's kinda like-"

Kushina cracked her knuckles and a series of terrified and painful screams echoed throughout Konoha as the men of the village shivered and covered their precious parts that were needed to start a family.

They silently prayed for the poor fool who had now lost that chance.

* * *

**Anyway, thank you all for waiting and here's chapter 10. I'm putting out a new poll to decide which direction the story will go. Again, it's entirely up to you. Thank you again for all your support and please review!**

**~Teddypro**

**P.S. - I'm putting the technique translations down if anybody is curious.**

**Techniques**

Suiton: Suiryudan no Jutsu - Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique

Mokuton: Sashiki no Jutsu - Wood Release: Cutting Technique

Katon: Karyu Endan -Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet

Mokuton: Mokusatsu Shibari no Jutsu - Wood Release: Smothering Binding Technique

Mokuton: Mokujoheki - Wood Release: Wood Locking Wall

Futon: Shinkujin - Wind Release: Vacuum Blade

Suiton: Suishoha - Water Release: Water Colliding Wave

Futon: Shinku Renpa - Wind Release: Vacuum Serial Waves

Futon: Shinkugyoku - Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere

Doton: Dosekiryu - Earth Release: Earth and Stone Dragon

Futon: Renkudan - Wind Release: Drilling Air Bullet

Mokuton: Jubaku Eiso - Wood Release: Tree Bind Flourishing Burial

**************************************Response to Reviews**

**************************************{Satos} - **Hahahaha another excellent chapter. I'm glad that you don't forget Tobirama's sensing ability. I can't wait for next chapter. Satos

**************************************_Answer:_ **To be 100% honest, if it wasn't for an entirely different fanfiction that included this I probably would have forgotten it; simply because up until then I didn't even knew he had such an ability.

**************************************{LadyLuxx} -** I only recently found this fanfic but i must admit that it has quickly become one of my personal favorites! I thoroughly enjoy the storyline, the way its written and how you manage to inject humor into it (alto of the story can be a bit lacking in that department. I can't wait for the next chapter.

**************************************_Answer:_ **Glad you are having a good time reading my fanfiction. Yeah, I do tend to lay off quite a bit of humor when it gets more serious. In future chapters, I'll try to include more, but only if the situation calls for it.

**************************************{Firestorm2004} - **Great chapter. Looking forward to seeing Danzo's "extermination". Can't wait to see what other chaos Naruto is going to cause as the Rikudo Sennin. One note for you: Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru are Sannin, not Sennin. Sannin literally means "Three Ninja" [San - Three, Nin - shorting of Ninja]. Sennin, if I am correct, means sage. Keep up the great work.

**************************************_Answer:_ **See people, this is how a review with critism should go. This person was nice and pointed out something I did wrong in an attempt to help me. Not like some others who are asking me why I made this piece of- Anyway, thank you for the info. Honestly, I didn't know this and I appreciate you telling me. I will fix this mistake in later chapters. Thanks again!

**************************************{Dark-Hyuuga1239} - **The only problem I'm having with this fic is the enormous amount of bashing that is going on...I mean this is a peace fic the least you could do is start with cutting sakura a small break. I Love the fic though. I'm actually thinking about doing this challenge because of this fic. And I agree with most of these people I want to see danzo die slowly and in the most painful way anybody can imagine. I can't wait to see the next chapter.

**************************************_Answer:_ **I understand where you are coming from. Please remember, I left this up to everyone else's decision, but yeah I see your point. I will put in the bashing more sparingly but to be fair in a world like the one Naruto is placed in I honestly would expect a bunch of people to be assholes. This is not to say they will always be but you must remember that humans aren't always going to see one way and when those who see kindness and love outnumber those who see hate and revenge, well, your bound to find some hypocrites. I am trying to keep Naruto more the piece keeper, however. So he will be solving conflicts diplomatically than he himself getting involved in actual fighting.


	11. Chosen Jinchuuriki Challenge

**Don't worry the next chapter is well under way. This fanfiction isn't dead. I've just been very easy since it's the last quarter of this school year. The next chapter should be out by the beginning of next week so be ready.**

**Anyway, I have a challenge for any who desire it. I call it:**

**The Chosen Jinchuuriki Challenge**

**The idea is that Naruto and the other eight Jinchuuriki somehow find their way together, forsaking their villages, to unite and aid the world from the shadows. They work off each other and learn to control/work with their Bijuu (not like with Naruto in canon, more like Bee). Eventually this gets to the point where they can bond all nine of them together to temporarily form the Juubi ([1] This is optional. [2] Goes with Rikudo Sennin's message to Bijuu about someone uniting them again). For those who haven't guessed, the 'Chosen Jinchuuriki' title comes from the idea of the Sennin's words to the Bijuu but you may chose to incorporate that only if you wish.**

**Now, for some ground rules.**

**(1) Naruto/Fu. I don't know, I like this pairing and it's grown on me recently. Also, please no harem. That'll make me sad. Other pairings you may decided. NO YAOI HOWEVER!**

**(2) Doesn't need to be god-modding. I understand if you want to take their training and working together slowly. But if you take that route, try and keep them in their base of operations until they're ready. The idea is that they're hiding from the rest of the world until they're ready to help from the shadows.**

**(3) Bashing = Optional. I honestly don't care.**

**(4) No non-Jinchuuriki joins their group. Period.**

**(5) Please try to keep crossover weapons and abilities to a bare minimum if any at all.**

**(6) Sasuke can stay or leave village. Again I don't care.**

**Now for some suggestions. These are completely optional.**

**(1) Try add side-stories like the Land of Snow or something like that or even get creative and make a couple up. That'd be great to read in my opinion.**

**(2) I think Uzushiogakure would be a great place for a base camp.**

**(3) Akatsuki going down first with Orochimaru becoming a huge threat towards the end.**

**(4) Even after Orochimaru's defeat have some form of last round of missions or some such.**

**If you'd like any ideas, feel free to ask me. Oh, and make sure you put up a like to your story on a review or PM me. I'll be sure to give a shout out to you in a chapter of my story. And I'll further the deal. The first person to finish a story under this challenge (a story that's over at least 100,000 words preferably) I will write one story for; a story of your choosing (There will be some guidelines to that but we'll get to that when we come around to it).**

**Again, sorry this isn't an update for a chapter but I didn't want to wait to put this out. Remember, check next week for the update. Thank you! Love you all!**

**~Teddypro**


	12. Mission Begins

**Disclaimer - I do not own Naruto.**

**Chapter 11 - Mission Begins**

* * *

"I'm sorry you can't stay, Naruto-kun."

Naruto and the Six Paths were gathered at the gates of Konoha ready to head back to Uzushio. The people who left to retrieve Naruto were gathered at that the gate to see them off along with Team Ebisu. The only person among this group who wasn't there was Sakura; not that anybody really cared. Ever since Naruto had beat Sasuke at Uzushio, she'd slow began to get more and more harsh and violent towards him. It didn't bother him much. He had discarded that crush on the pinkette and he was no longer afraid to defend himself from her if necessary.

"I know, Hinata-chan," Naruto replied to his girlfriend's statement. He smiled, "But it's an unfortunate necessity to fulfill the duty I now have. This has to be done."

Hinata sighed but nodded, "Can I at least come with you."

"Sorry, Hinata-chan," Kushina spoke up. "But I don't think that's a good idea. We can't have any active shinobi of any village be on the expedition of peace. It will simply bring distrust."

"It's okay. I understand."

"Anyway, out of bad thoughts," Naruto spoke up. "First, we're heading back to Uzushio. Then we'll decided from there which village we are going to go to first."

"More than likely the villages will have already heard the news by the time you arrive," Jiraiya smiled. "Let's face it. News like that travels fast between shinobi villages."

"Point taken," Naruto smirked. "Well, it does make my job easier."

"Hopefully," Tobirama muttered. Hashirama overhears this a puts a hand on his brother's shoulder. He smiles, "Oh come now, Tobirama, be a little more positive!"

"I'm just being open to other point of view."

"Enough," Naruto spoke. He returned his attention to Hinata and kissed her, "I'll keep in touch, Hinata-chan."

She smiled in return, "You'd better."

"See you, everyone!" Naruto waved at the others gathered.

"Take care, gaki," Tsunade smirked.

"Good luck!" Ino shouted.

"YES, NARUTO, GO SHOW THE WORLD YOUR FLAMES OF YOUTH!" I'll give you one guess who that was.

"Don't get yourself killed. It'd be far to troublesome for everyone." Again, one guess.

"You'd better show me that sword when we meet again!" Tenten shouted, forcing the promise on him.

"I expect a spar when we meet again," Kiba smirked.

"See you later, dobe," Sasuke smiled slightly.

"Good bye, Naruto-kun."

With that, Naruto and his Six Paths vanished in a Hiraishin flash. Sakura 'humphed', "Good riddance. That back was annoying the hell out of me."

The only response was a glare from everyone present.

* * *

**At Sunagakure. . .**

"_What is the point of all this paperwork. . ._" Gaara thought in an aggravated tone as he wrote his own name in a well-practiced style on the paper. Seriously, his name must currently be the most-written word he has ever used. "_I pray to Kami that something interesting happens or I might go insane again_."

As if Kami was listening to his silent prayer, an ANBU appeared before the young Kazekage within a second after he thought that, "Kazekage-sama, I bring news from Konohagakure!"

"_Damn, I should pray to Kami more often_," Gaara thought. "Very well, tell what is it?"

"I am here to report that one Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto has temporarily reentered Konoha."

"What?!" Gaara's voiced raised, for one of the few times actually showing genuine emotion. He was glad that his friend was back but confused by the statement. "Wait. . . Namikaze? Temporarily back? What do you mean? Speak."

"Kazekage-dono, Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto has recently revealed to be the son of the Yondaime Hokage, Namikaze Minato, the Yellow Flash, and Uzumaki Kushina, heiress to the now-rebuilt shinobi village of Uzushiogakure, the Red Death. He has resigned active service from Konoha to begin a new mission that was thrust upon him."

Gaara was silent for a moment before he asked what that new mission was.

"He is, apparently, the reincarnation of the legendary Rikudo Sennin, the Founder of the Art of Ninjutsu, and his new mission is to unite the Shinobi World together in unity."

Gaara in that instant showed the single greatest expression of emotion he had ever managed to pull of. His eyes were wide with shock and his mouth slightly hung open. He slowly leaned back as he processed the information.

"I see. Thank you, you are dismissed."

"Kazekage-dono, there's more."

"More?"

"Hai. Apparently, as the Rikudo Sennin Tensei he has the Sennin's dojutsu, the Rinnegan, and with it, he can use six bodies to control Six Paths that are gifted with the Rinnegan. These Paths have been confirmed as the four previous Hokages and the two former Jinchuurikis. Two of them are his parents."

Gaara was stunned needless to say, "I see. Dismissed."

"Hai, Kazekage-dono."

With that the ANBU vanished. There was a long silence in the office, almost as if time itself had stopped. A good time later Gaara finally smiled slightly, "_Naruto. . . you may have not become Hokage. . . but you've certainly surpassed it._"

* * *

**At Kirigakure. . .**

The new Godaime Mizukage sat down at her chair finishing up her paperwork. While that may have been strange considering it was still midday, it wasn't so much so since they had just recently ended their civil war and she now had a ton of paperwork to do because of it. It was a total curse by itself but after just being in a civil war and having a good amount of time without a Mizukage and she ended up with a never-ending pile of paperwork. She could almost cry.

"_It's not fair_," Mei thought. "_I wish to Kami that something interesting would happen today. Please? Just today?_"

As if on cue, an ANBU appeared bowing to the Mizukage, "Mizukage-sama, I bring word from Konoha."

"_Wow, thank you Kami_," Mei thought after blinking but shook it off shortly afterward. "Alright then, let me hear it."

"According to reports, one Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto, son of the Yondaime Hokage and Red Death, Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Kitsune, has returned to Konoha but has resigned active service to fulfill a new role. He has been revealed to be the reincarnation of the Rikudo Sennin."

"What?! The Rikudo Sennin?! As in the Founder of Ninjutsu?!"

"Hai, Mizukage-sama."

She was stunned silent for a very long time. Finally, she spoke, "Is he handsome?"

The ANBU sweat-dropped at the flirtatious personality of his kage.

"I don't know. I haven't seen him."

"Well if he's the son of the Yondaime then he has to be."

"Um. . . whatever you say Mizukage-sama. . ."

"Anyway, do we know what he has planned?"

"Hai, Mizukage-sama," replied the ANBU snapping out of his awkwardness. "He is apparently trying to finish what his past incarnation started: bringing unity and peace to the Elemental Nations."

She was silent for a moment, "I see. Well then. . . at some point he's going to come here then. Make sure we are ready to greet him."

"Hai, Mizukage-sama."

* * *

**At Iwagakure. . .**

"Argh!" the Sandaime Tsuchikage growled in anger as another stack of papers were added to his desk. "This is ridiculous! What the hell are half of these for anyways?! Are they really that important?!"

"Yes," he secretary commented. "And the sooner you get these done-"

"-the sooner more will be produced," the Tsuchikage shouted, kicking his leg in his desk. "Ow! Damn, desk! How is the desk stronger than me?!"

His secretary sighed. The old man growled, "I swear to Kami that if something interesting doesn't happen I'm going to break something!"

Just then an ANBU appeared and kneeled to the Tsuchikage, "Tsuchikage-sama, I bring important news from Konohagakure."

"_Huh, thank you Kami-sama_," The Tsuchikage, Onoki, thought. "Very well, what is it?"

The ANBU quickly relayed all the details of what had occurred in Konoha. The Tsuchikage was, needless to say, shocked.

"WHAT?!" his cried called throughout the land.

* * *

**During this time. . .**

Naruto blinked as he and his paths looked around, "You hear something?"

Hiruzen shrugged, "I thought I just heard the Sandaime Tsuchikage."

Naruto blinked, "Huh."

Then he sneezed, "Dammit, how does that keep happening? Kurama-san prevents me from getting sick."

His paths merely shrugged.

* * *

**Back in the Tsuchikage's Office. . .**

"Um. . . Tsuchikage-sama. . ."

"You mean to tell me that the son of our greatest foe is NOW THE REINCARNATION OF THE RIKUDO SENNIN?! Onoki shouted. His secretary sighed, "Tsuchikage-sama. . . blood pressure. . ."

Onoki growled but sighed, "As it stands now we don't know how powerful he is. . . so when he arrives I suppose we have to be at least a little compliant with him until we determine his goal. For now, we'll try to act. . . civil. . ."

The Tsuchikage stared outside the window, "Hopefully I shall not regret this decision."

* * *

**At Kumogakure. . .**

The Raikage, A, was busy hard at work dealing with the bane of every kage's existance: Paperwork. It's amazing how something so simple and seemingly easy could cause so much pain. A himself began to wonder why the Interrogation and Torture Department didn't use this method to torment prisoners.

"I swear if I ever find who writes up half this paperwork I'm doing to shove one of Bee's swords right up his ass!"

Nearby a sneeze was heard and the sound of him running away tumbling over every piece of furniture in his wake as he left terrified. A sighed, "Dammit. Kami-sama, if you care for this poor soul curse with paper work, please give me something interesting to discuss."

It was then an ANBU appeared, "Raikage-sama, I bring news from Konohagakure. It involves the apparent heir to the deceased Yondaime Hokage."

The Raikage blinked, "_Huh, I should probably worship Kami more often. Well, I guess it's never too late to become a man of faith._"

"I see. Give me the full details if you would."

After the message, the Raikage was massaging his temples. This was giving him a headache, "So not only is he the Yondaime's heir but he's also the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki?"

"Hai, Raikage-sama."

The Raikage sighed, "Do we known where he was headed?"

"According to our spies, he is based at Uzushiogakure. He's planning on visiting the Five Great Hidden Villages sometime soon to discuss ways to live more peacefully as was the desire of his previous incarnation."

"I see. I'll believe he can accomplish that when I see it. Until then, dismissed."

"Hai, Raikage-sama."

* * *

**At Uzushiogakure. . .**

"Wow, you come right back just to leave again?" Kaosu asked Naruto as they readied themselves to head out. Kaosu had found them in the Uzukage Tower already gathering supplies for the long journey ahead of them to Suna.

"Yeah," Naruto replied. He and his paths were already preparing to go. "We just needed supplies. We'll be heading to Suna. You don't mind staying here do you?"

"Nah," Kaosu said waving it off. "However, I could check to see the movements of the Akatsuki and that damned serpent if you'd like me to."

Tobirama nodded, "I do think it would be wise to know our enemy's movements."

"Especially the Akatsuki," Kushina spoke up, throwing in her own two cents. "We might be able to spare a couple of Jinchuuriki because, despite our power, I honestly don't think we'll be able to protect them all. I feel if we at least know the order we can act quickly and save some from their hands."

Naruto nodded, "Not a bad idea. Kaosu?"

"I will see to it, Rikudo-sama," Kaosu bowed before he vanished as a wisp of black smoke. A tick mark formed on Naruto's head and his paths laughed.

"Oh relax, Naruto," Hiruzen said to the ticked-off sage. "You know he does that just to push your buttons, right?"

Said sage sighed, "Yeah I know. Doesn't make it any less irritating though."

"**Well if that's the case**," came Kurama's voice from within Naruto's mind. "**You'd best be going if you want to reach Suna soon. . . Rikudo-sama.**"

Another tick mark formed on the Sage Reincarnate's head, "_SHUT UP, FURBALL!_"

The only response that was heard was the Kyuubi's laugh echoing through his mindscape. Naruto grumbled, "_Yeah, laugh it up. Don't forget I can tell Gaara, and by extension Shukaku, that you fainted._"

Instantly, the laughter stopped. "_Heh, thought so_."

"Um. . . Naruto-kun?" his mother asked him hesitantely waving a hand in front of his face. "Uh, you there?"

Naruto blinked then looked at his mom, scratching the back of his head sheepishly, "Whoops, sorry kaa-san. I was having an bit of a verbal exchange with Kurama."

Half the paths chuckled at that and the other half simply sighed and shook their heads. It was then that Hiruzen spoke up, "We must get going soon. The sooner we can get the other villages to cooperate the sooner we can deal with the Akatsuki."

"Agreed, let's go."

With that, the six paths moved out; their mission to unite the five Great Nations was about to get underway.

* * *

**In Amegakure. . .**

Nine figures in black cloaks that were covered with red clouds stood in a cavern of sorts on top of nine of the ten fingers of a giant statue.

One had orange hair with Rinnegan eyes. Another, who was the only female, had blue hair and a flower in her hair. There was one with green hair who was black on one side of his body and white on the other as well as a venus fly trap-like appendage around his head. Yet another had blue skin and a shark-like quality to him and on the finger next to his was a young man with black hair will a dull expression. Nearby, there was a man with long hair tied in a pony tail and what appeared to be a device of his left eye. Near him was a hunch-over man with a mask and across from him were two others; one with silver hair and wielding a tri-pronged scythe and another with his face almost completely covered.

They were the Akatsuki, an criminal organization made up entirely of S-ranked criminals.

"Why the fuck are all of us even fucking here?" swore the one with silver hair and the tri-pronged scythe.

"Zetsu has apparently learned some important news that will greatly hinder our plans." the woman with blue haired replied.

"Oh, big fucking joy."

"What is it you have to report, Zetsu?" the man with the Rinnegan asked in an authoritative tone as he turned to the black and white man with the venus-flytrap-like appendage.

"Apparently, the Kyuubi brat has somehow gained the Rinnegan. . ." Zetsu began causing a stifle gasp and a stunned expression from a majority of the group's members. "**He claims to be the Rikudo Sennin Reborn. Ridiculous if you ask me.**"

"Nevertheless," the woman spoke up again. "One of our targets having the Rinnegan an having been off-the-grid for two years is a major problem. We need to decide how we are going to deal with this."

Many of the Akatsuki members spared a glance at their leader. He was obviously not happy about the boy's claim and seemed ready to head out to murder the poor teen if he wasn't one of the people they needed to complete their objective.

"Zetsu," their leader spoke up gaining everyone's undivided attention. "Where is the brat based and where is he now?"

"The Kyuubi brat is based in the restored Uzushiogakure," Zetsu replied. "**Currently he's heading for Sunagakure.**"

"Very well. I want you to follow them an discover where he is heaing next. Once you do, come back here and report to us. Since we cannot underestimate him, all of us shall take out the Kyuubi when he's between Suna and his next destination. Until then, none of you are to leave Amegakure. Is that understood?"

"Hai," came the general response.

"Very well. Dismissed."

* * *

**Meanwhile, with Naruto. . .**

"Achoo," Naruto sneezed as a chill went down his spine.

"You alright, Naruto?" Kushina asked her son. Naruto nodded, "Yeah, but I just felt a cold sense of foreboding running down my spine. I feel that we're going to get into a fight real soon and that person wants me dead."

"Well, he has all seven of us to deal with," Hashirama smirked. "I don't think we have too much to worry about."

"Hmph, agreed," Tobirama uttered.

They had mad good progress since leaving Uzushio and were now nearly through Hi no Kuni and were fast approaching Kaze no Kuni. The desert wasn't in sight yet but it was close enough. The trip overall had been relatively boring to say the least. Nothing of any consequence had occurred since they left.

That was about to change. . .

"HELP!" cried out a female voice an instantly Naruto and his Six Paths stopped. "HELP US! PLEASE! HELP!"

"Come on!" Naruto ordered as he quickly made his way towards the origin of the voice. The Six Paths needed no other words as they were on Naruto's heels as they followed the Sennin. It wasn't long before they reached a bleeding woman near a destroyed wagon. Two dead men were nearby, a pool of blood had already formed around the bodies. The boxes of supplies in the wagon were either non-existent or ransacked. The whole scene looked like a mini-massacre. The seven shinobi quickly got by the woman's side.

"B-bandits. . .," she uttered through sobs. "Bandits attacked us. . . they. . . they killed m-my hus-sba-ba-band an-and my broth-other-in-law. . . t-they ki-ki-kidnapped m-m-my d-d-dau-aughter. . ."

Suddenly, the woman lurched forward and grabbed onto Naruto's haori.

"P-please! S-sav-ve my d-daughter. . . she's. . . she's on-only-y s-s-s-ix ye-ears old! P-please! I don't-t w-wa-ant her to su-suffer t-the fa-fate I kn-know th-they are g-g-going t-to give h-her. . ."

Naruto took hold of the woman's hands and nodded, "Don't worry. We'll save her."

"Th-th-thank y-y-yo. . . u . . ." the woman smiled before she passed out alarming the seven shinobi present.

"Ah! Mito!" Naruto exclaimed. In an instant, Mito was trying to revive her. After a couple seconds, Mito looked back at Naruto, "I've stabalized her, but we need to get her to a hospital and fast."

Naruto nodded, "Okay go. Okaa-san, can you follow her? Not that I don't trust you Mito, but should anything get in your way you can't afford to waste any time."

"No problem," Kushina smirked and nodded. And with that, Mito and Kushina vanished with the woman. Naruto turned to the rest of them, "Alright, now, let's go hunting."

The male Paths all nodded and immediately vanished in unison.

* * *

**A short distance away. . .**

"Please," a tiny voice squeaked out through a stream of tears. "l-let me go-"

SMACK!

A broad, strong hand backhanded across the face of the six year old girl who was bruised, bleeding, and covered in tears. The gruff, scarred man who smacked her sneered, "Quite, you little bitch! We'll get to you in a minute."

The other seven other bandits laughed darkly at the thought. The girl could only whimper as one of the bandits snickered, "I doubt we've had this much fun in a long time, right."

"Ri-."

"Shut up."

"What?!" All the bandits instantly were up and on guard. They turned to see a young boy of about fifteen wearing a haori and wielding what looked like a monk's staff staring at them with purple, ringed eyes. "Who are you, brat?"

"I am Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto and I am here to put an end to this. Release the girl. Now."

"Or else what?" the bandits asked raising their weapons. However, one bandit halted, "Wait, Namikaze? As in the Yondaime Hokage of Konoha?"

Naruto smirked, "I see you know the name of my father. What do you think? Impressed?"

There was a flash of yellow and a man who looked like an older version of the young boy stood there, "Not really. I was famous when I was alive."

"W-w-what?!" the bandits gaped. "You're supposed to be dead!"

"So are we," commented Hashirama as he and the final two, formerly dead Hokages walked out from behind Naruto. "But I really don't see the big deal."

"Probably because we've been walking this world again for about two years now," Hiruzen replied to his former master's comment. "Not so much a big deal to us now is it?"

"The first four Hokages and the son of one of them?!" one of the bandits cried. "This is out of our league! Book it!"

They turned to flee, however, they were blinded by a bright, yellow flash. When they looked ahead they saw to their horror that the former Yondaime Hokage was standing in front of them with a dark glare apparent in his Rinnegan eyes. Minato frowned, "You cowards are not going anywhere."

"Do you honestly think we're just going to let you go after you killed this poor girl's father and uncle, severely injured her mother, _and then_ sought to use her as your own pleasure tool?" Hashirama asked. "No. We are ending your crime spree here and now."

"Y-y-you can't do that!" a bandit stuttered out of terror. "You are no policeman!"

"I do believe it is universal law that murder is dealt with by either life in prison or capital punishment, correct?" Naruto asked though he already knew the answer.

"Correct," Hiruzen confirmed then he glared at thugs. "How many people have you killed and how many women have you violated?"

The bandits were shaking in pure terror but did not answer.

"Well?"

"Twenty-one and eight," one bandit finally muttered out but the five nin all heard it. All their gazes darkened and Naruto took a deep breath, "Now tell me. If I was a judge what punishment would I have convicted you with due to those charges?"

The highwaymen were silent but they all knew and had practically soiled themselves with fright. Here were five kage-level shinobi and here they were, eight bandits with no level of shinobi training whatsoever. They knew their lives were forsaken. Naruto looked on and sighed, "I'm going to create a few kage bunshin and you are going to go with them back to Konoha where you _will_ turn yourselves in. What they decide to do to you will be on them. Your criminal days are over and now you are going to suffer the consequences of your actions."

Naruto then spoke again after a brief pause, "**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**."

Instantly, six Narutos appeared while the original looked at the thugs who were now slightly relieved, "Go."

Without any delay they took off with the Kage Bunshin taking to the trees to make sure they went straight for their destination. After they had vanished into the forest, Naruto turned down to the little girl who was gazing up at him in awe. He slowly walked over to her and she recoiled out of fear. Naruto paused for a moment and then, even more slowly, approached her and held out his hand, "Shh, it's okay. My name is Naruto."

The small girl slowly looked up at him, "A-A-Aiko. . ."

Naruto smiled as she stood up to look at him, "Wh-wh-where's kaa-san and otou-san?"

Naruto's smile faded slightly, "I'm sorry. We made it in time to save you mother. . . but your father and uncle. . ."

The girl's, now named Aiko, face dropped as she began to cry. Naruto held onto her in a comforting hug, "Do you want me to take you to your mother?"

Aiko looked at Naruto and nodded. Naruto picked her up and put her on his shoulders, "Hold on tight, okay?"

Aiko nodded and the five shinobi took off.

* * *

**Sunagakure. . .**

At Suna, the woman Kushina and Mito brought to the hospital was currently into intensive care. Kushina and Mito had used all their effort to reach Suna in half the time it would've taken them normally. However, the doctors had managed to get her stable and to keep her alive. Despite this, they didn't know if she would survive her injuries. They had come to Suna due to them being closer to Sunagakure even though they were technically still in Hi no Kuni when they found her. From what they saw from Naruto's vision, they had the girl and were now bringing her back to Suna. The bandits would be Konoha's problem.

Finally, the doctor came out of the woman's room, "She's asking for you."

"How is she?" Kushina asked. The doctor sighed, "She has a 50/50 chance at this point. We've done everything we can. Now she's in Kami's hands."

With that the doctor walked away and Kushina and Mito entered the room. The woman was laying in her bed obviously tired and bandaged up. She turned to the two woman who managed to get her this far, "Th-thank you. . . without you I'd-"

"Don't say it," Kushina said raising her hand. "I know. . ."

The woman nodded, "Is. . . is my little Aiko, okay?"

Mito smiled, "Yep. Don't worry. The boys have got her and they'll be here in a few minutes from the looks of it."

The woman blinked in confusing causing the two red-haired women to rub the back of their heads sheepishly, "We can see what they're seeing. Part of the package deal of abilities with these eyes."

She blinked again but nodded nonetheless. After the awkward moment, she slowly turned her gaze out the window. Mito and Kushina gave each other a worried glance, "Um. . . excuse me, miss-"

"Could you both do me one last favor?" Both women blinked at each other and then looked back at the bed-ridden mother. "Could you find Aiko-chan a good home for me?"

Both Uzumaki women were instantly alarmed and they could tell the men were as well as they saw their pace instantly quicken. Kushina frantically got to the woman's bedside, "Don't talk like that. You're going to make it! You will see your little daughter again!"

Tears began to form in the woman's eyes even as they began to grow ever more distant, "Please. . . p-promise. . . me. . ."

Mito instantly left to get the doctors and Kushina still tried to get the woman to fight back before finally Kushina's hair lowered blocking her eyes, "I-I promise."

The woman smiled and managed to utter out, "T-thank y-y-you. . ."

With that, the woman closed her eyes. . . and breathed her last. . .

BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE-

Kushina gasped and instantly the doctors were by her side attempting to revive her. Kushina and Mito hung back desperate praying that she would recover. However, what they heard next made them go pale.

"KAA-SAN!"

Little Aiko ran into the room with Naruto and the men trying to stop her. When she saw her motionless mother, the doctors around her, and heard the loud beep on the heart monitor tears began to form in her eyes. After a slight pause she managed to utter out, "Kaa-san?"

* * *

**Well ain't that a dark way to start off a long awaited update. Sorry 'bout that but summer has been a bitch to me work wise. Anyway, to make up for that the next chapter should be coming out Saturday or Sunday Pacific Coast time. I appreciate the patience and I'll try to get the updates out a lot faster. Please read and review!**

**~Teddypro**

**Response to Reviews**

**{Gold Testament}** - *Shakes head in shame* Poor Jiraiya...The idiot couldn't go without being a perv even for Naruto. Nice job pissing off Orochimaru, and at least the six paths didn't waste time killing Danzo unlike Sasuke. I mean in the anime and manga Sasuke used his Mangekyou through the fight at the five kage summit, the ENTIRE fight with Danzo, and the first few minutes in a fight with Kakashi and Sakura before he began to lose his light. Anyway back to Jiraiya he really should've thought it through before spying on Naruto and Hinata for reserch for Icha-Icha since thanks to the Rinnegan Minato and KUSHINA are alive, so why didn't he think about over-protective parents?

**_Answer_**: *Shrugs* I dunno.

**{Leomitch}** - R.I.P Jiraiya. Here lies a peeper how got Brutaly beaten by The six paths Reason: he peep on his godson en perhaps his goddaughter in law's date We kan all pray to kami that he now learn his leason

**_Answer_**: Unlikely.

**{ProtoPhinbella}** - Oh Naruto's Pathes took Danzo to School

_**Answer**_: Actually the took him to hell but whatev-. . . actually to some I guess they are kinda the same thing, huh?

**{Wolfstein}** - Recently started reading this story and I'm really enjoying it. The only thing I would like to complain about is that Naruto and his six paths keep explaining their abilities to everyone.  
While I know he can trust his friends, he doesn't need to put most of what he can do on blast, so that everyone can know. Should keep some surprises.

_**Answer**_: Yeah. . . sorry about that. Making the chapters 4,000+ words with interesting dialogue is hard work and I am trying to do better. I'll try to only explain new abilities from now on.


	13. Duty of the Sennin

**Disclaimer - I do not own Naruto.**

**Chapter 12 - Duty of the Sennin**

* * *

_**Last Time**_

_"P-please! S-sav-ve my d-daughter. . . she's. . . she's on-only-y s-s-s-ix ye-ears old! P-please! I don't-t w-wa-ant her to su-suffer t-the fa-fate I kn-know th-they are g-g-going t-to give h-her. . ."_

_Naruto took hold of the woman's hands and nodded, "Don't worry. We'll save her."_

_"Th-th-thank y-y-yo. . . u . . ." the woman smiled before she passed out alarming the seven shinobi present._

_"Ah! Mito!" Naruto exclaimed. In an instant, Mito was trying to revive her. After a couple seconds, Mito looked back at Naruto, "I've stabalized her, but we need to get her to a hospital and fast."_

_Naruto nodded, "Okay go. Okaa-san, can you follow her? Not that I don't trust you Mito, but should anything get in your way you can't afford to waste any time."_

_"No problem," Kushina smirked and nodded. And with that, Mito and Kushina vanished with the woman. Naruto turned to the rest of them, "Alright, now, let's go hunting."_

_The male Paths all nodded and immediately vanished in unison._

* * *

_He slowly walked over to her and she recoiled out of fear. Naruto paused for a moment and then, even more slowly, approached her and held out his hand, "Shh, it's okay. My name is Naruto."_

_The small girl slowly looked up at him, "A-A-Aiko. . ."_

_Naruto smiled as she stood up to look at him, "Wh-wh-where's kaa-san and otou-san?"_

_Naruto's smile faded slightly, "I'm sorry. We made it in time to save you mother. . . but your father and uncle. . ."_

_The girl's, now named Aiko, face dropped as she began to cry. Naruto held onto her in a comforting hug, "Do you want me to take you to your mother?"_

_Aiko looked at Naruto and nodded. Naruto picked her up and put her on his shoulders, "Hold on tight, okay?"_

_Aiko nodded and the five shinobi took off._

* * *

_"Could you both do me one last favor?" Both women blinked at each other and then looked back at the bed-ridden mother. "Could you find Aiko-chan a good home for me?"_

_Both Uzumaki women were instantly alarmed and they could tell the men were as well as they saw their pace instantly quicken. Kushina frantically got to the woman's bedside, "Don't talk like that. You're going to make it! You will see your little daughter again!"_

_Tears began to form in the woman's eyes even as they began to grow ever more distant, "Please. . . p-promise. . . me. . ."_

_Mito instantly left to get the doctors and Kushina still tried to get the woman to fight back before finally Kushina's hair lowered blocking her eyes, "I-I promise."_

_The woman smiled and managed to utter out, "T-thank y-y-you. . ."_

_With that, the woman closed her eyes. . . and breathed her last. . ._

_BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE-_

_Kushina gasped and instantly the doctors were by her side attempting to revive her. Kushina and Mito hung back desperate praying that she would recover. However, what they heard next made them go pale._

_"KAA-SAN!"_

_Little Aiko ran into the room with Naruto and the men trying to stop her. When she saw her motionless mother, the doctors around her, and heard the loud beep on the heart monitor tears began to form in her eyes. After a slight pause she managed to utter out, "Kaa-san?"_

* * *

"K-kaa-san?" Aiko called out again, tears beginning to form in her eyes. Naruto's eyes darkened, '_No. I can't be too late. I won't allow it. I swore she would see her mother again and I will not allow it to be her dead mother. She will survive. That is my nindo!_"

"Aiko-chan," Naruto spoke gaining the little girl's attention. "I will bring your mother back. With the Rinnegan, I can do so."

"R-really?" Aiko asked. This information surprised the doctors as well. What couldn't the Rinnegan do?

"Hai," Naruto confirmed. "First, we need to get her to an open ar-"

"What is going on?" a voice spoke up surprising the others in the room as they turned to see the Kazekage standing in the doorway.

"Gaara?" Naruto blinked. "What are you doing here?"

"I heard you brought someone in and I came to see what was going on."

"We found this woman bleeding heavily and her husband and brother-in-law dead. We saved her daughter from the same bandits and brought her to see her mother but. . ." Naruto turned back to look at the pale, motionless woman on the bed. The doctors had begun to disperse to go to their other patients. "We arrived too late. I intend to revive her using Gedō: Rinne Tensei."

"Revive her?"

"Yeah, using a large amount of chakra I can resurrect her after summoning the King of Hell."

"Are you sure that's wise, Naruto?"

Naruto and the Six Paths blinked in surprise and Aiko looked on in disbelief, "What? What the hell do you mean by that?! Aiko here just lost her entire family and now we have a chance to resurrect her mother and you say 'it's not wise'?!"

"Have you thought about the consequences, Naruto? I would've thought the Harbinger of Yami would have taught you how to think everything through and I surely would've expected four past hokages and two Uzumaki heiresses to do that same."

"What the hell are you talking about, Gaara?" Naruto asked angrily.

"Say you do resurrect her, Naruto, what then?" Gaara asked setting up the scenario. "She'll be all alone with no supplies, no means of paying for a home, and stuck trying to provide for a little girl while trying to provide enough for herself and with no means to do so with. Aiko is it? Did your mother work?"

Aiko shook her head no, "No, kaa-san took care of me. Tou-san was working a lot."

"Any other relations? Family?"

Again, she shook her head no. Gaara looked at Naruto again, "Have you even considered what the woman would have to do to take care of her child. . . or herself? I can't take care of her as I have an entire village to look after. People have to work to make a living but to take care of yourself and a child with no previous working experience? Naruto, you'd be condemning this girl and her mother to a horrible life."

There was a long silence. No one knew what to say. On one hand Gaara made a valid point of what the mother and daughter could go through. On the other, however, the girl had a chance to get her mother back and live with her last family. Even Aiko seemed conflicted. Would her life really be that bad if she had her mother back? Would her mother be able to provide for her and herself? Finally, Minato sighed, "You know. . . this reminds me of what Kaosu once said back during training."

"Huh?" Naruto blinked.

"Remember? A few months ago? During that bonfire in front of the Uzukage Tower?"

* * *

_**Flashback**_

_Naruto, Kaosu, and the Six Paths were all circled around a decently sized bonfire before the Uzukage Tower. They had just finished another hard day of training and were enjoying relaxing. Kaosu was relatively silent through the majority of it before he decided to speak, "Naruto, I must ask you something."_

_Naruto blinked, "Huh? What is it?"_

_"Do you think good can come from something that seems dark and, dare I say it, evil?" _

_"Wait? Where did that come from?"_

_"Answer the question, Naruto."_

_"I don't get what you're trying to ask."_

_Kaosu sighed, "Here's the dark truth of it all. Sometimes even the darkest of occurrences are meant to occur because it can lead to the brightest of outcomes. For example, your birth. As tragic as the occurrences that happened on the day of your birth including the death of your parents you must admit that in the end the results were certainly worth while, do you not agree? Everything you've done be it alone or with the help of those few willing to has made you much stronger and far more determined than any child I've seen."_

_Naruto nodded though he only barely understood what he was talking about, "Why are you telling me this Kaosu-sensei?"_

_"Simple, Naruto. Because as the Rikudo Sennin you will have to make many very tough choices very much like any other kage except with you it may be a decision that affects things on a world-wide scale. Sometimes, you may have to pick the lesser of two evils."_

_Naruto looked to his father and mother as well as the other three kages for confirmation; and all of them nodded sadly proving the truth of the matter. Slowly, Naruto lowered his eyes to the bonfire as he thought about this revelation._

_"No one said the duty of the Rikudo Sennin Tensei would be easy, Naruto," Kaosu spoke again knocking Naruto out of his train of thought. "Just remember, sometimes even the darkest of actions can lead to the brightest of futures. Sometimes it takes something dark and cruel to bring forth the light and just."_

* * *

Naruto looked down, unsure of what to do. The lesser of two evils; this was definitely what Kaosu was talking about. No doubt about it. What should he do? Should he give the girl back the only family she has left but give the chance that her family will find it incredibly hard to live? Or should he leave the girl with no living family but give her the chance to live a decent life with a family that could love her like their own? Naruto was unable to decide what to do. Could he make decisions like this? For the first time since he received his eyes. . . Naruto felt powerless.

It was then that he felt a tug on his haori. Looking down he saw that it was Aiko, her tears now having dried though she still wore a sad expression, "N-Naruto-san. . ."

"Wha-what is it Aiko-chan?" Naruto asked kneeling down to her level so her could speak with the little girl more easily.

"I-I don't want t-to make kaa-san's life hard," Aiko said teary eyed. "I-I want her b-back, b-b-but not if it m-makes our lives w-worse. . ."

The current occupiers of the room blinked in surprise at the little girl's words. They expected her to say she wanted her mom back, but it was clear that Gaara's words proved a point. Aiko looked up as tears began to drip from her eyes, "I. . . I don't want to hurt kaa-san. . ."

With that she broke down crying and Naruto held onto her tight as he comforted the now-orphaned girl. Kushina, Mito, and Hiruzen moved to help him.

* * *

**The Following Day. . .**

It was approaching mid-day when Naruto and the Six Paths entered the Kazekage office to discuss things with Gaara. Little Aiko had stayed with them for a night with her cuddling next to Naruto and the following day she was taken to an orphanage. She was scared and it took Naruto promising to visit her to finally make her go into the building. The matron swore to take good care of her.

Now, however, was the time to steel all emotions. It was time to get down to business.

"So I know you seek peace, Uzumaki," Gaara began. "How do you plan on doing that?"

"What we decided," Naruto answered. "Was that we all keep in touch and during a time that is good for all five kage we schedule a summit in Tetsu no Kuni with their permission. There we will discuss ways to get the Five Great Villages closer."

"So, you are not going to just say that we're to get along?" Gaara smiled a bit.

"Did you just tell a joke?" Naruto blinked.

"Perhaps. . ."

"Anyway," Naruto said after a brief pause. "Just be prepared. It'll likely take place in about three to four months."

"I understand," Gaara said. "And what may I guess we shall talk about?"

"We talked about it with Kaosu-sensei," Naruto answered. "We were basically going to to focus on four different areas: military, economic, social, and political. About military will be trying to get the Five Great Nations to try and make more military actions together. Maybe cooperative missions or teams. Economically is trying to trade more with each other. Socially we'll try to have more social events like festivals or some such. And politically would be stronger alliances and more meetings between the kages to discuss events that have occurred. I plan to discuss it better when all the kages present and maybe even the daimyo if they are all willing to come."

"Seems like a logical idea though it is good you have at least some idea of what you're going to try and do to bring peace."

Their was another brief pause before Gaara continued, "I trust you will let me know when this meeting is to occur."

Naruto nodded, "Like I said, it'll most likely take place in about three months but I'll give you an exact date soon. Try and see if you can get the daimyo to join as well."

"I'll send him a letter once I have time."

"Arigato."

Once again, there was a brief pause. . .

"So Gaara," Naruto smiled. "How's kage life?"

"Troublesome," Gaara stated outright and back in Konoha a certain Nara sneezed. "All this paper is the bane of all kage. But other than that. . ."

In unison, the four past Hokages all sighed and Naruto smirked, "You know that Kage Bunshin?"

"I know the Suna Bunshin," Gaara asked raising an eyebrow.

"They solid."

"They can be."

"Ever tried using them? They share the same mind you do so they'd make the same decisions you'd make. . ."

Gaara opened his mouth to answer but his eyes immediately widened and his lips instantly shut. He just stared off into space with the most expression he has likely ever shown. After a minute, Naruto and the Paths started to get worried, "Uh. . . Gaara. . ."

BAM!

Gaara's head suddenly smacked down and met his desk up close and personal. They could hear the uttered phrase, "Kami dammit. . ."

The four Hokages were soon by his side patting the young Kazekage on the back. Naruto, Kushina, and Mito couldn't help but laugh at the poor predicament of the other kage-level shinobi in the room.

* * *

**Near Uzushiogakure. . .**

Kaosu walked again to where Tamashi and his daughter were training. They hadn't even known he was there until he walked into the training area. Shinami was the first person to notice him, "Otou-san!"

Instantly, she ran over and hugged him. Kaosu returned the hug and ruffled her hair, "How have you been Shinami?"

"Good, Otou-san!" she replied joyfully. "Tamashi-sensei says I'm making amazing progress!"

Kaosu chuckled, "Good to hear, Shinami. I look forward to sparring with you soon."

"So, Kaosu-san," Tamashi finally spoke up. "What is it you need?"

Kaosu grinned, "How would you like some more. . . comfortable living quarters."

The two blinked before looking at their senior Harbinger, "What do you mean, Otou-san?"

"I'm going to meet up with Naruto and his Six Paths en route to Iwagakure and I need someone to watch over Uzushiogakure while I'm gone," Kaosu spoke. "I hope you don't mind."

"Will I be able to meet Naruto-san?" Shinami asked excitedly.

Kaosu chuckled, "Eventually. When he returns."

"YAY!" Shinami cried out. "Come on, Tamashi-sensei! Let's go!"

In an instant, she ran off in a random direction.

"Shinami!" Tamashi called out causing the young girl to pause. "Yes, Tamashi-sensei?"

"Do you even know where you're going?"

"And aren't forgetting your personal items?" Kaosu added in.

You could practically see the three dots form over the little girl's head. Before she blushed from embarrasment and chuckled nervously, "Whoops, sorry Otou-san, Tamashi-sensei. . ."

At this, the two colleagues laughed at the poor girl's expense.

* * *

**In Amegakure. . .**

"So, he's about ready to leave Sunagakure?" Pein asked Zetsu. The Akatsuki observed their plant-like member intently. This would be when they moved out to find the so-called Rikudo Sennin Reborn once Zetsu delivered his message.

"Yes, he's just about to leave," said White Zetsu followed by Black Zetsu continuing. "**He's heading to Iwagakure next.**"

"I see," Pein trailed off in thought as he began to decide their next move.

"What are your orders, Leader-sama?" Itachi asked.

Their was a long pause before Pein opened his Rinnegan eyes, "Zetsu. Inform us again whom the Paths are."

"The Yondaime is the Deva Path and his wife, Kushina, is the Animal Path. **The Shodai and his wife are the Preta and Asura Paths respectively. **While the Nidaime is the Human Path and the Sandaime is the Naraka Path."

"Hmm," Pein was in deep thought yet again. "Kakuzu, you've fought the Shodai before so I want you and Hidan to fight him."

Kakuzu nodded and Hidan smirked, "Of course, he can't kill a fucking immortal!"

"Kisame, I want you fighting the Nidaime. His water jutsu won't do much to you and your chakra capacity should be able to outlast him."

"Gotcha," Kisame grinned.

"Itachi, I want you taking on the Sandaime. Your Sharingan should provide you a decent advantage against the former Shinobi no Kami."

"Hn."

"Deidara," Pein said gaining the attention of the blond's attention. "I want you fighting the Yondaime. I do believe your Iwa blood requires you to gain revenge on the Yondaime for his past misdeeds against you."

"He won't know what hit him, yeah," Deidara smirked as the mouthes on his hands chewed his explosive clay.

"Sasori, I want you to fight Mito Uzumaki. Your puppets should be able to match her weapon arsenal."

Sasori nodded in acknowledgment to his leader.

"Konan, I want you to fight Kushina. You've seen the summons of the Six Paths so you know how to counter them."

Konan nodded, "Very well."

"And Zetsu, you remain hidden and help any of the Akatsuki who need the support."

"It will be done," Both halves of Zetsu said at the same time.

"Very well, if you are all prepare. . . Akatsuki! Move out!"

"Hai!" came his subordinates as the group of S-ranked nin left their cave hideout.

* * *

**In Sunagakure. . .**

"Thank you again for hearing us out," Naruto said as they approached the entrance to Suna. Gaara gave the slightest hints of a smile before replying, "Anything for my friend. I hope you journey to Iwa turns out well. I hope nothing occurs due to you being the son of the Yondaime Hokage. I do believe they still have a grudge am I not correct?"

Minato grinned, "I think we have a plan for that, don't we?"

"Correct," Kushina said giving a Naruto-like smirk causing a few chuckles. It was then that they heard a young voice call from behind them, "Naruto-san! Naruto-san! Wait!"

The group turned to see little Aiko running towards them while a caretaker at the orphanage tried to keep up with her. Naruto bent down to her level as she jumped into a hug with him, "Don't leave without saying goodbye, Naruto-san!"

"Sorry, Aiko-chan. I didn't mean to," Naruto said as he held her out arm's length.

"You're going to comeback soon, right Naruto-san?" Aiko asked as tears began to form in her eyes.

"Yeah, as soon as I can," Naruto answered smiling. "Now don't cry, Aiko-chan. I will be back. Stay strong for me, okay?"

Aiko nodded sadly, "Hai, Naruto-san."

"Hey Naruto," came the voice of Mito.

"Yeah?"

"Maybe we can convince Kaosu to let his daughter come with us next time we come here. Maybe she can hang out with little Aiko-chan here."

Naruto smiled, "That's a great idea."

Naruto then turned back to Aiko, "I'll see you soon, okay?"

Aiko nodded, "Okay. Bye Naruto-san! Bye other six people!"

Naruto chuckled as the Six Paths sweatdropped having just remembered that they never really told Aiko their names. Naruto then turned to Gaara, "See you later, Gaara."

Gaara nodded as Naruto and the Six Paths took off out of Suna.

* * *

**Much later. . .**

Naruto and the Six Paths were traveling through the desert approaching the rocky land of Tsuchi no Kuni. As they ran they became aware of someone approaching them. The quickly stopped and prepared themselves for who it was. To their surprise, it was Kaosu. The Harbinger smirked, "Hey, guys."

"Kaosu?" Naruto blinked. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Aren't you supposed to be watching Uzushio?" Hashirama asked, his eyes narrowing. Kaosu shrugged, "My friend, Tamashi, who worked with me as a Harbinger for many years, and my daughter are watching the place. I felt a dark sense of forebodding so I had to come here. I think the Akatsuki may be after you now."

"You have no idea how right you are."

Alarmed. The group of eight turned to see a man with orange hair and Rinnegan eyes with seven other nin in black robes with red clouds behind him. Naruto's eyes narrowed, "Nagato I presume?"

Pein's eyes narrowed, "That is Pein-sama to you. So you're the Kyuubi jinchuuriki who claims to be the Rikudo Sennin Reborn? You may look the part but your power cannot match me. I am a god!"

Naruto smirked, "That remains to be seen, Nagato. Kaosu. Does his power compare to a god's."

Kaosu shook his head, "Not even close. I should know. I work for fucking Yami for Kami's sake."

Pein sneered, "You think you can beat us?! We will capture you! We will bring peace to this world!"

Naruto's group raised their eyebrows in surprise, "Bring peace? With the biju? Somehow that seems more like threatening people to get along rather than actually convincing them. If you seek to take the biju and somehow use them to create a false peace then I will stop you."

Naruto and his Paths instantly got into fighting stance, "Let's see who's the real successor to the Rikudo Sennin, shall we Nagato?"

* * *

**I should really stop setting deadlines since I can never freaking keep them. Oh well. Anyway that was Chapter 12. I hope you've enjoyed it and please review!**

**~Teddypro**

**Response to Reviews**

**{Leaf Ranger} - **You're evil. How could you end on such a sad note, huh? Overall though, was a great chapter.**  
**

**_Answer:_ **I do have this cruel, sadistic side that I keep very well hidden. Hey at least the girl wasn't. . . you know. . .

**{Psycho Punisher} - **Lord knows I don't like Sakura, but if you're just gonna keep her around so everyone else can have a dog to kick around, you might as well kill her now, because the bashing often taints the scene.

**_Answer:_ **Idon't fucking care what you want. I left it up to the viewers and that's what they voted. You don't like it, you don't have to read this fanfiction. I'm not fucking forcing you. Stop acting like a whining bitch. You can't always get what you want. Rage all you want but when the chips are down it's my fanfiction and I have the right and ability to write whatever I want on here. Stop complaining and either suck it up or don't read. Either way, I don't care. Besides, it's not like she in this fanfiction often so far anyway.

**{YamiChaos27} - **About time, I was beginning to wonder when this was ever coming out. Anyway nice job on this. It's funny how all the Kage were all frustrated with paperwork and prayed to Kami for something interesting and then right after received the exact same news. Can't wait for the meeting with Gaara. Maybe Naruto and Hinata could have a lucky encounter, where Hinata's on a mission and just happens to settle into the same town Naruto's in at the same time. That would be a heart warmer.**  
**

_**Answer: **_Are you related to the Yami in this fanfic? If you are, let him know he's a dick. But I digress. Yeah, sorry. My computer was being a dick in ways I'd rather not talk about over the course of the summer and all the schoolwork I have to do over the summer isn't exactly helping much. About the mission thing, maybe but we'll see.

**{wacko12} - **you should have Uzumaki OC appear, three of them being Naruto's grandparents and the third being his uncle. reply

_**Answer: **_Okay, look. You've already asked me this how many times now? If I say no, it means no. Stop asking me this. No Senju or Uzumaki OCs are going to occur in this. You want a Peace Challenge fanfic that does have that, create your own or find somebody else's. Just stop asking me this or there is going to be issues, you here?


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